Got Nothing But Time
by Another Shy Gamer
Summary: When seals go wrong, there are only devastating consequences. In one particular case, two vastly different beings are swapped in the chaos and forever changes the life of Uzumaki Naruto. Now he has far more time on his hands than even he knew what to do with, but by Kami does he use it. Smarter/stronger Naruto.
1. Chapter 1

**Got Nothing but Time**

* * *

Every Konoha citizen knows the story of October 10th. The day the demon, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, wreaked havoc onto the village and caused the death of over 400 citizens and shinobi combined. Whether it be brothers, sisters, friends or family, all suffered from the unprovoked attack that left many homeless, jobless and, in extreme cases, forever disabled. No one in the village went unaffected by the Kyuubi's attack and many to this day are still mourning for their lost.

However, more than the attack itself, many remembered the name and actions of the man that saved them from destruction. His name was Minato Namikaze and he was the Fourth Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato (Hidden Leaf Village). On the day of the attack, he fought and triumphed against the demon that laid waste to his home, but at the cost of his own life. Many were told that he killed the Kyuubi no Kitsune and many believed this tale, but many more knew the truth.

A few days after the Kyuubi attack, there was a huge assembly at the Hokage tower with all shinobi present and many civilians awaiting their Hokage's speech. It turned out the Third Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was reinstated and he wanted to lift the spirits of his people by telling them the final wishes of the Fourth Hokage. He wished to reassure the masses that the Kyuubi was indeed defeated and reveal the true hero of Konoha.

Newborn Naruto Uzumaki, son of the Yondaime and the one who now held the strongest Bijuu in the Elemental Nations within himself and becoming Konoha's next Jinchuuriki.

Unfortunately, Hiruzen vastly underestimated the hatred that ran through his own people. Instead of people praising the boy like the Yandaime wanted, they spat curses and demanded his death. On that same day, a law was passed. No one was to speak of the Kyuubi's host on punishment of death. Naturally, this brought more outcries, mainly from the civilian populace, but after many trying, and failing, to end the 'demon child's' life, most by execution by Konoha's elite ANBU forces protecting the child, people kept their scorn to themselves and swore to get their revenge for their lost love ones in other meaningful ways without losing their lives.

This was how Konoha was for the next 12 years. Licking their wounds while making one Naruto Uzumaki's life a living hell on the side. Whether it was overcharging him for food and other items, or outright throwing him out of their shops, they were all getting their pounds of flesh slowly.

However, to everyone's shock, horror and frustration, he never cried. He never screamed, retaliated, or even showed a frown. In fact, as the years went by, it became harder and harder to take their frustrations out on the emotionless blonde. Mind you, not for a lack of trying. He just seemed to be able to avoid trouble all together and never got caught committing crimes despite things magically disappearing whenever he was around. If that wasn't frustrating and scary enough, the fact he has been caught multiple times talking to himself throughout the years had both citizens and shinobi on their toes.

In one particular incident, the blonde laughed out of nowhere, the first emotion ever seen on the blonde, that the people around him felt a sudden shudder go up their spines and backed away from him slowly. and many shinobi and citizens alike reported it to the Hokage that same day. The blonde was forced to visit the Hokage that day and nothing like that has happened ever since. Some thought he was talking with the Kyuubi, while others thought the blonde had finally snapped.

But only Naruto knew, and would ever know, what was so funny that day.

Now, there is a clear reason why the Kyuubi attack on Konoha was so important to history itself. It was the day the Yondaime died while sealing the Bijuu, yes, but the important part of that was how the Yondaime sealed the beast. In another time (or alternate reality), the Yondaime would have used the Fuinjutsu: Shiki Fujin (Sealing Technique: Dead Demon Consuming Seal) to seal the beast within his son. But in this time and space, he did not know such a jutsu.

Instead, he used the only other sealing jutsu he knew. A time-space jutsu that would seal the Demon's chakra fully into his son while taking his life in the process. It was a jutsu he and his wife Kushina had worked years on and was forced to use in its incomplete state. He had gotten the idea from his signature technique, the Hiraishin, and put it's space-time elements into a seal that would put the being it was sealing into a completely different dimension while still being connected to the individual it was being sealed into. It was supposed to be a last resort just in case anything was to happen to Kushina's seal, the Jinchuuriki of the beast at the time, and they needed to quickly transfer the beast away before it got lose and killed her and the people around it. It was a complicated process, but they were so close to completing it.

Unfortunately, the time for it to be used came closer than they would have liked and both perished after using said jutsu to transfer the kyuubi into their only child while being impaled by said beast. Their deaths were not in vain since they succeeded in sealing the demon. However, there was a golden rule with seals. If a seal was incomplete on one forced chakra into it, it would have one of two effects: it would either blow up in the user's face causing little to serious bodily harm depending on how many characters are drawn, or it will act like a dud explosion-tag and fizzle out until the paper was nothing but ashes.

In this particular situation, the explosion is what occurred, but not in the outside world. Once the demon was secured inside the new Jinchuuriki, an explosion occurred in the alternate space within the boy—causing a tear in the very fabric of space and time and pulling the confused and distressed Kyuubi through the black hole. After said hole fully devoured what was once known as the most powerful Bijuu in the Elemental Nations, it closed unceremoniously—leaving the space the Kyuubi once inhabited as void as it was created.

However, just before the tear in space and time closed, a small figure fell through the crack and landed softly on it's back. The figure looked to be a young girl with parakeet green hair that went all the way down to the back of her shins. If anyone were to gaze at the girl that seemed to be peacefully sleeping on the ground, then they would notice 3 very important aspects of her character.

The first would be that she was as naked as the day she was born. The second would be the fact her ears were longer and pointier than any human had a right to be. The third, and most prominent, would be the wore looking weapon she held tightly to her chest. It was a double-edged blade that had the pointed edge of a blade, but had the fuller designed like a human spine with cracks and all and seemed to be longer than the girl herself. The guard of the blade resembled that of dragon wings while the rain guard was wide and had a hole in the center. The last notable thing about the blade would be the shocking fact it was glowing and fading red as lava, as if mimicking the heartbeat of its current holder.

In this dimension, no one knows of the little girl that now slept peacefully within the Jinchuuriki of Konohagakure no Sato, but in a completely different dimension and time, this girl was widely known as the pillar of the world and one who is known throughout every church in the kingdom of Fodlan.

This one switch between one godly being and a demonic fox would change the course of history and the life of one Uzumaki Naruto. For better or for worse? That has yet to be seen.

* * *

_**~Naruto 3-Years-Old~**_

_**[July 13**__**th]**_

"…_**Ch…ild…Hea..call…"**_

The first time Naruto heard the creepy voice, he was scared. It came out in bits and pieces and it was extremely hard to understand, but his little mind was too focused on the fear of something he couldn't see talking to him to worry about the fact the ghost was speaking in a language he didn't yet know. He had tried many times to tell the adults that something was following him around, but the mean orphanage people wouldn't believe him.

As time went by, the voice began to get louder and louder no matter what he did to get away from it. He tried hiding under his covers at night, but the blanket never protected him. He tried going into groups of other kids, no matter how much the meanies say he can't play with them, but that only seemed to annoy the ghost more. He tried telling the adults again, but they would just punish him for no reason like they always do.

It wasn't until a week went by that he finally got the courage to speak to the ghost terrorizing him. To his surprise, the voice spoke right back to him and he could somewhat understand what it was saying. The words kept coming back in jumbled sentences and he could barely understand a word, but he learned that the more he talked to it, the more he was starting to understand it. Single words turned into sentences, and sentences eventually turned into paragraphs.

At first, he really didn't like the ghost. It kept calling him names like idoit, buffoon and other mean names he didn't understand, but the little praise gave him occasionally more than made up for it and, for once in his life, he felt... happy. Unlike the adults and other kids, it actually listened when he talked. It helped him when he didn't understand something (however reluctantly), it cheered him up (well, _tried_) when he was down, and it scolded him whenever he did or said anything stupid (as in tear his ear off until he understood what he did or said wrong). It never held that same hateful tone the adults had for him and it began teaching him things that he would never had been able to learn from anyone else.

The only downside to the ghost was it was always sleepy. Like, _really_ sleepy. It would always nod off during their conversations and he wouldn't hear from it again till the next day, couple of days, or even weeks. Those days were lonely, but whenever Ghost-san was back, it would have his full attention.

The ghost was a lot of things: very smart, mean at times, a slob, and a _total_ loner!

But it was a friend…

Yea…

A friend…

His _first_ friend.

* * *

_**~Naruto 4-Years-Old~**_

_**[December 21**__**st]**_

It had been an entire month since the orphanage had kicked him out. At first, he was really angry and wanted nothing more than to scream and hurt all those unfair and mean adults, but his only friend stopped him. Instead, he let it go and was forced to survive by eating the trash out of garbage bins or whatever he could successfully steal from shops. It was a hard life and the cold didn't make it any better, but he truly believed that as long as he had Ghost-san by his side, then anywhere in the world would be home.

Speaking of his only friend, it was currently sleeping once again while he walked through the dark streets of Konoha. Unfortunately for him, the alley he had been sleeping in for the past few weeks were guarded by angry civilians that he once stole from. He had absolutely no intention of knowing what they would do to him with those bats and pitchforks so he decided it would be a good idea to find somewhere else to sleep for the night. It's not like that was the only alleyway in Konoha anyways, right.

It was as he was walking to another alley ahead of him that he was forced to stop. The blonde's eyes widened when he saw a black figure turn his direction while holding a small bundle over his shoulder. Now, Naruto have seen many ninja in the village. Most tended to ignore him (which was good considering he would never make it on the streets if they chased him down), but every last one of them had one thing in common. Every one of them had a headband that signified Konohagakure no Sato.

This man, however, had no headband at all and from the bundle that seemed to be moving on his shoulder, Naruto immediately knew this ninja was not one of Konoha's. After coming to that quick conclusion, he immediately opened his mouth to scream for anyone that could come and help.

Before he could even get any air out of his throat, he suddenly heard a very weird and nasty sound ring through his ears. It was followed by an intense pain he'd never felt before in his life and air refusing to come out of his throat. He stumbled back before he felt his entire body get colder and he fell to his back. He tried opening his mouth to scream for someone to stop the pain he was feeling, but all that came out was this nasty metallic taste that kept escaping his mouth.

Panicking, he tried begging Ghost-san for help, but there was no answer. He tried moving his body but could only move his arms to the place that was hurting so much. He felt something sticking out of his throat, but he couldn't pull it out.

And it was as he was desperately trying to remove the thing that was causing him so much pain that he realized something no 5-year-old should ever realize.

He was dying. He was dying alone where no one would help him and he was dying before he could truly experience the life he didn't really even know.

Despite knowing that his end was coming, he couldn't help but think of his one and only friend. If he was gone, who would Ghost-san talk to? Who would Ghost-san scold now? Would Ghost-san even miss him if he were gone? What would happen to Ghost-san if he was gone? Tears and other liquids were pouring down his face as he realized he would be leaving this world and his only friend far too early.

As his body began to go numb and his eyes began closing, he could only think of one thing: "I-I want…to…li…ve…"

And as if answering the only wish he had ever had, the sound of glass shattering echoed through the world and a purple haze covered the Elemental Nations and the world beyond.

…

Naruto stopped on his walk to the alley and suddenly jerked before taking in deep breaths as if they'd be his last. He felt extremely dizzy and couldn't stop himself from falling to his knees while quivering uncontrollably. His hand absentmindedly came to his neck as if expecting it to no longer be there. A second later images invaded his head and bile along with the little he had eaten that day emptied from his stomach to the pavement. After emptying his stomach of all its contents, he got control of his dry-heaving and stood to shaky legs.

'_What happened?'_ he asked no one as he looked forward. A shiver suddenly went up his spine as he looked to the alley that was just 50 yards in front of him. Vision suddenly assaulted is mind and he had to stop himself from throwing up again as he remembered the black figure throw something through his neck.

"**Hide NOW you idiotic child! Quickly, before your fate is renewed**!"

He didn't have time to question the distorted voice of his only friend since his body was too busy subconsciously following orders. Taking cover in the bushes conveniently to his left, he made sure not to move as he peaked through the leaves obstructing his view. Moments later, his heart nearly stopped when he saw the same black figure once again running towards him. Not a sound left his lips this time as he watched the figure run closer and closer to him. Thankfully, this time he ran right past his hiding place and down the path he had previously been coming from.

The blonde didn't even have time to feel relieved since the second his eyes followed the black clad ninja, said ninja was falling to the floor in a boneless heap as another man in a white robe had a palm outstretched to where the ninja's chest used to be. Many things happened after that. More people in robes and Konoha shinobi gear appeared and even knew shinobi wearing strange animal masks appeared to take the body away. They were there for a good 15 minutes before everyone cleared out. He could swear the white robed man that saved the girl in the bundle was looking his direction before he too left with the little girl Naruto's age that was once wrapped in the bundle.

Only when he was sure everyone was gone did he leave the bushes and run as far away from that place as possible. What he experienced that night and what he saw would give him horrifying nightmares for the next few months.

* * *

_**~Naruto 5-Years-Old~**_

_**[May 3**__**rd]**_

Naruto held up his rusted kunai as he slowly backed away from the old man blocking his way out of the alley. He had only stopped for a second to check his steal of the day, but it would seem that second was his downfall since the moment he was about to eat the bread he had stolen, a shadow covered him completely and he turned to see this old man wearing white robes and a strange hat was blocking his way. He didn't look like much and Naruto was sure he could outrun this old fart, but something deep inside him told him that this old man was strong; _crazy_ strong. And the smile the old man kept giving him only made his nerves that much more jittery.

"I see the spirit of a fighter is strong with you, young one." The wrinkly old man chuckled as he got closer to the blonde who backed away unconsciously. "Ohohoho, please don't be so fearful, child. I can promise you this old man has no ulterior motives. I just wish to talk to you. Honest!"

The way the old man spoke and the smile on his face would have normally reassured most children, but Naruto Uzumaki wasn't a normal kid. After living on the streets for more than 6 months, he had learned that the only one he could trust was himself and Ghost-san. Anyone else always took advantage of him and he always paid for it in the end. He still bore one particular mental scar from a shinobi he once trusted and after that event, he swore never again would people take advantage of him. This wrinkly old man was no doubt the same.

"Tell you what, if you sit down with me for only a couple of minutes, I'll let you wear my special hat. How does that sound to you?"

Naruto only raised an eye brow as he looked to the hat on the old man's head. The only thing the blonde could find unique about the hat was the single kanji on the front of it that was surrounded by white while the rest of the hat was red. Since he couldn't read well, he didn't know what the symbol on the hat stood for and it only made the blonde think even less of it.

"What's so special about it? It's just a stupid hat." The blonde grumbled, surprisingly getting a wider smile from the much older male.

"Ah, but this is a very special hat." The old man said as he removed said hat from his head, revealing his grey locks to the world. "Tell me son, do you know what a shinobi is?" Naruto didn't know where the old man was going with this, but he nodded slowly anyways.

"They protect the village from bad people… and kill those who hurt others." The blonde said, having flashbacks to the night the man in white robes killed that bad enemy ninja. The old man simply nodded at the blonde's answer.

"That is…somewhat correct my boy, but there is more to a shinobi's life than that." The old man said as he looked fondly at the hat in his hands. Then he began speaking fondly, soundly like a record that has repeated the same song over and over again. "A shinobi's job is to defend their homeland from threats both inside and out. A shinobi is someone who is willing to risk their lives for their home and the people within it. A shinobi is one who trains relentlessly to protect the things and people they care about and open a future for the home they are protecting. A shinobi is one who willingly goes through days of torture to keep the secrets of their home away from enemy hands even if it kills them in the end." He then sighed longingly as this look came across his face that the blonde could not understand. The words that came out next was almost a whisper, "…for the true measure of a shinobi is not how he lives, but how he dies. It's not what they do in life, but what they did before dying that proves their worth."

Naruto didn't realize he had fallen out of his battle stance as he began getting more and more engrossed in the old man's words.

"This hat is a symbol that you understand and uphold the shinobi code. The one who wears this hat is not only viewed as a true shinobi, but also holds the power and allegiance of all Konoha shinobi. In other words, this hat is the symbol that you have not only been acknowledged as the strongest ninja in the village, but have achieved the peak of a shinobi's career in Konohagakure no Sato."

Naruto couldn't remember the last time he was this excited about something in his life. He had seen the cool ninja before throughout the village and would embarrassingly admit he has mimic some of the cool things they do when he was alone, but he never thought how cool and important their jobs really were! And this old man in front of him was at the top! He had gained the respect and acknowledgement of everyone in the village just by wearing that hat! He wanted to wear that hat! He wanted people to stop looking at him so hatefully and look at him like the old man before him now was! If he had that hat, then people would finally acknowledge him for who he is! They'll _have_ to respect him then!

He didn't realize he was reaching out to the hat that was being held out in front of him until the old man suddenly pulled it away and placed it back on his head.

"It is unfortunate, but I can clearly see you aren't interested in such a profession." The old man said sorrowfully as he turned to leave. "I guess I'll be taking my lea-"

"No!" the smile on the old man's face returned when he saw the boy looking at him with a frantic expression on his face. Yet, a second later, he seemed to have realized just how desperate he looked and coughed into his hand. Seeing the boy try to keep his image made the old shinobi nearly chuckle. "I-I have an interest in being a shinobi… so… umm…" The old man had to stop himself from laughing at the clear embarrassment the boy was showing in asking for something he clearly wanted. Who knew a 5-year-old already had pride?

He didn't stay sheepish for long however, since a second later he gathered his wits and shouted right at him. "Please tell me more about the Hokage, Jiji-san!"

If possible, the smile on the old man's face became even wider.

"Tell me son, have you ever had Ramen?"

* * *

_**~Naruto 6-Years-Old~**_

_**[October 10**__**th]**_

Naruto stood still in the middle of a 4-way intersection. It was one of the only streets of Konoha that was not currently lit with fancy lanterns or decorations for the yearly Kyuubi festival. However, this day was special for Naruto since it was not only the day the Kyuubi was defeated by the Yondaime Hokage, but also his birthday.

Now, normally kids his age would be celebrating with friends or family for the only day in the year where you can be thankful for the day you were born. However, Naruto was not one of those kids. In fact, he hated his birthday since it was one of the days of the year where angry and drunk people actively hunted him down like he was a raging animal that needed to be slain (even if he gave them good reason to do so).

That, however, did not mean he didn't celebrate his birthday. Oh Kami no. He celebrated his birthday every year a month early with Ghost-san. The only difference between this year and the other 3 he celebrated was the fact Hokage-jiji and the nice Ramen stand people all gave him gifts that he now had hidden in the apartment Hokage-jiji happily gave him. He wouldn't lie, the gifts they gave him were pretty good and he would treasure them for as long as they last, but it was the gift Ghost-san gave him a month ago that completely trumped anything the other three most important people in his life could ever give him.

It was as he was thinking about the gift that he realized people were finally starting to turn three of the four corners on the street. Like he was expecting, it was a group of angry villagers he had very recently stolen from, or others who were there for other nefarious reasons. Within seconds, he was completely surrounded, yet his mask of indifference stayed present even after looking at the sneers on faces of the people surrounding him.

"Nowhere to run you little demon!" One of the angry villagers yelled as they all began to close in.

"You guys seem angry." Naruto pointed out the obvious with a tilt of his head. That only seemed to make the people surrounding him angrier and a second later the first civilian, an old woman the blonde remembered stealing fruit daily from for kicking him out for no reason, came charging in with a torch and ready to use it like a mace. The boy did nothing but watch every movement of the woman as she raised up the torch and brought it straight down to meet his emotionless face.

Then suddenly, the sound of glass shattering echoed through the village and the entire world stood still; quite literally. Everything animal, human, insect and item stood frozen in a distorted purple haze that touched every inch of the Elemental Nations and beyond.

The only living being in the world unfazed by this unnatural phenomenon was the blonde that was now curiously looking up to the fire that was only a few centimeters away from his face with new glowing, sea-foam eyes. He raised his hand and grabbed the torch that was once unfrozen by time out of the woman's hand. The torch once frozen in time suddenly came back to life with all it's fiery glory. He stared at the torch for a second before staring back at the woman who had tried burning his face off. Without hesitation, he casually tossed the torch into the woman's face and watched as the wood first splintered before the fire completely engulfed the old bat. the fire spread over the woman's figure for only a second before it too became frozen by time once again.

"I wonder what your screams would sound like. Maybe then, we could understand each other." he thought darkly, but as he expected, nothing happened. No burn, no reaction from the one now on fire, nothing. He knew why, but he could never get used to the feeling of the world itself standing still at just a simple thought. The things he could, and _would_ do to the people that wronged him always threatened to take over his mind. However, Ghost-san would have none of that. She had warned him that just like she gave him the power, she could just as easily take it away and he was not too keen on pissing off his only real friend even if that meant he had to suppress his darker thoughts. It was the least he could do for the one who had technically raised him for the past 2 years and hearing it's disappointment was far scarier than anything these people could say or do to him.

Ever since the day that strange ninja 'killed' him, he has been eagerly using the power given to him by his best, and only, friend. After he had ran to safety that day, Ghost-san had told him all about what had happened and the fact it had basically saved his life. The moment those words left it's mouth, he wanted to hug the voice so bad that tears poured out of his eyes for the second time that day in his whole life.

Now, almost a year later, Ghost-san was still protecting him by using it's power whenever his plan to steal food went wrong or when the civilians cornered him and nearly did very bad and painful things to him. Then Ghost-san taught him how to use it's power and he has loved it ever since.

But alas, every power comes with a price. After using it multiple times, he soon learned that 7 times in a day is his limit. He had tried using it more once, but it ended up strangely draining his stamina dry and he had to spend a week in the hospital since he couldn't move a muscle. Thankfully, Hokage-jiji came to visit every day and left some of his animal friends behind to make sure he was safe from the stupid villagers.

The other thing he learned quickly was the more he used it, the more Ghost-san slept. One time, he used it every day for a week and Ghost-san didn't speak again for an entire 3 months. Those months were singlehandedly the coldest and scariest of his life and he swore to use Ghost-san's abilities sparingly from that day onward.

The last con of this time stopping ability was the fact he couldn't disrupt anyone frozen in time and however far back he wanted to go, he would have to follow. For instance, this stopped him from stopping time and moving yards in front of someone and starting time again. He had tried and would always end up wherever he was when time began again at that point of time. Ghost-san tried explaining it once, but it got really angry when he didn't fully understand the big words and fancy sentences it was using to explain to him.

All in all, he loved this power and he loved the one who gave it to him more.

Back to the present, with just a thought, the people around him began walking in reverse while Naruto stayed where he had been for the past 10 minutes. He sped up the process and watched as the bodies ran backwards slowly and into the corridors they came from. After making sure he had rewind time back far enough, with another thought the purple haze slowly phased out and he was once again alone in the clearing.

Naruto grinned happily as he put his arms behind his head and walked down the only path the civilians didn't appear. He kept the rare smile on his face as he continued to use his gift to make it all the way to his apartment—not passing a soul along the way.

* * *

_**~Naruto 7-Years-Old~**_

_**[November 1**__**st**__**]**_

_***Academy Year 1***_

"We are training to be shinobi. Why should I care whether or not I fight fair?" Naruto asked in genuine confusion despite the plastic stare he was giving his scar-faced academy teacher, Iruka Umino. The scar-faced man could only sigh and rub the bridge of his nose. He would be angrier at the boy's oblivious attitude if he hadn't dealt with this exact situation many times in the past. The boy genuinely didn't understand what he did wrong and it was up to Iruka to try and explain, once again, something he thought was common sense.

"Naruto, the point of the exercise is for me to grade you on your Taijutsu skills. Though your reasoning is logical, and I truly applaud you for your train of thought, it sadly defeats the whole purpose of the exercise if you don't follow the kata you were taught." Iruka did his best to not turn and look at his assistant teacher, Mizuki, who was on the ground cradling his family jewels while trying to rub away the dirt that had been thrown in his eyes. Iruka couldn't help but thank Kami he wasn't the one demonstrating kata today. That punch to the balls from the 7-year-old looked _really_ painful.

Naruto blinked up at his teacher before tilting his head in confusion. "But Jii-san said a shinobi should always take advantage of opportunities—training or no."

"That's true, but-"

"And you once told us that shinobi must do whatever they must to survive."

"Yes, I did. However-"

"Then why does it matter if I cheat to-"

"I KNOW IT DOESN'T MATTER OBJECTIVELY! JUST FOLLOW THE DAMN-" the instructor stopped himself and clenched a fist before he took in a breath to calm down. Yelling at the blonde would get him nowhere. The kid was absolutely right in his way of thinking, but he clearly didn't understand the meaning of the phrase 'a time and place'. The only thing he could think to do in the future was be _very_ specific when teaching this particular troublesome student of his. _Oh joy_.

"Look, Naruto. Please, just, follow the kata like you were taught. Your are correct, but the only way we can grade you on what you've learned is if we personally see it. Going outside the assignment parameters defeats the whole purpose of the test."

"But Iruka-sensei, you said-"

"Do. The. Damn. KATA."

Naruto stared back at his teacher with that same impassive look before turning back to the now recovered Mizuki and getting into a stance that seemed awkward to the blonde. Restarting the spar, Iruka frowned the longer it went on. Naruto was performing the kata as told, but the technique and execution of every strike seemed to be off in one way or another. Where one would usually transition to another move when blocking or attacking, Naruto performed it as if trying to connect different segments together to make it work. No surprise, it didn't work and it only ended up leaving huge gaps in the young shinobi in training's guard that was life threatening. He didn't know why he was doing it, but it was quite uncharacteristic for a student as bright (if not a bit too straightforward) as the Uzumaki to not soak up the kata Mizuki teaches him like a sponge the way he does the rest of his work. It would just have to be something he brought to the blonde's attention in the future.

Seeing enough, Iruka called the match. However, while Naruto dropped his guard, Mizuki continued the assault with a sneer that Iruka would only acknowledge after the event that was about to occur. The Chuunin's leg came up in a roundhouse kick that went unseen by the turning blonde. From the speed and the angle the kick was coming at, Iruka was sure only disastrous results would come if that kick connected. Not even with all his speed as a Chuunin could aid him in stopping what he knew was going to be lethal.

His fears were confirmed when a sickening snap echoed through the school grounds and young Uzumaki Naruto was sent flying until another 'snap' was when the boy's head smashed into the tree bark. There was but a second of silence before horrified screams echoed from the children watching. Iruka was immediately at Naruto's side and almost emptied his stomach at the eyes that stared into the distance without an hint of light. He barely registered his best friend frantically cursing aloud before it followed by the sound of a sword leaving it's sheath and a wet splat silencing him and emitted more screams from the kids. He barely registered the shadow of multiple ANBU standing over him. He barely registered someone speaking to him before others tried taking his now dead student from his-

***CRASH***

…

…Seeing enough, Iruka called the match. However, while Naruto dropped his guard, Mizuki continued the assault with a sneer that Iruka would only acknowledge after the event that was about to occur. The Chuunin's leg came up in a roundhouse kick that went unseen by the turning blonde. From the speed and the angle the kick was coming in, Iruka was sure only disastrous results would come if that kick was connected and not even with all his speed as a Chuunin could aid him in stopping what he knew would be lethal.

However, what actually happened was not something the instructor, or anyone for that matter, was expecting at all. Almost in slow motion, Iruka saw the blonde duck as if knowing the kick was coming, then reached into his back pocket and quickly popped something into his mouth. The blonde then stood up with a lighter (of all things) open in his hand and took in a deep breath. The unaware Mizuki had already made a full 360 degrees and was now looking back at the blonde who stared back with puffed cheeks.

A second later, Iruka's, and nearly everyone in the class, jaw dropped as a stream of fire escaped the blonde's mouth and completely engulfed the sky blue haired Chuunin. Mizuki let out a cry of anguish as he tried patting out the flames that didn't last longer than a few seconds. If things couldn't get any worse for the man, the second the blonde stopped spewing flames, he dashed right in front of the panicked Chuunin and jumped into the air with his legs drawn back. Then he kicked forward with all his strength and into, once again, the balls of the screeching Chuunin. The older male was launched off his feet and out of their makeshift arena wall that was nothing more than a circle on the ground.

Naruto looked down at the whimpering Chuunin once again cradling his balls before looking back to Iruka-sensei. The teacher's mouth hung agape along with half the class as the blonde just tilted his head. "…He was open."

Iruka could only slowly tap his clipboard repeatedly against his forehead while the rest of the class laughed. No one saw the cold look in the blonde's eyes as he glanced down at his 'instructor' before rejoining the rest of his class.

A month later, an investigation was made on Mizuki for suspicion of treason. An _anonymous_ _source_ had delivered heavy evidence of sabotage of one Naruto Uzumaki. On further investigation, it was shown that not only had he been sabotaging Naruto, but the entire school by altering curriculum and slowly lowering the quality of textbooks and stealing from school funding. Multiple letters written from an unknown source was found in his home while he was in captivity. The letters confirmed that he was being given orders by an outside source that had not yet been identified.

He was trialed and found guilty a week later. That same day, he was executed for treason and the shinobi academy went through some changes. The curriculum were back in order and many shinobi in training quit from the increase in their training and studies. This event would turn out to the betterment of Konoha as a whole and it was all thanks to the 'anonymous' individual for smoking out their little _traitor_.

* * *

_**~Naruto 8-Years-Old~**_

_**[August 1st]**_

If anyone would ask Naruto what his social life was like, then he'd probably tell you it consisted of two old men, a girl 5 years his senior, his teacher, and a voice in his head (not that he'd tell anyone the last one considering the ramifications of said confession).

In his defense, it's not that he hadn't tried gaining friends in the past. He had tried gaining friends his age many times in the orphanage, but they would all scorn him the second his name was even mentioned because of the caretakers. He had saved a pink haired girl once and she actually played with him up until the time her mother came and told her she wanted her nowhere near him ever again. In the academy, he just had no need to speak to the rest of the kids because either their parents told them not to, or they were not able to keep a steady conversation with him due to his advanced way of speaking molded into his mind thanks to conversing with a being in his head that could verbally insult you in ways you wouldn't understood unless you had a dictionary.

That being said, there was a particular event that stopped all chances of ever getting friends in his class.

_***Flashback***_

_It was lunch time and Naruto had been present in the class along with about 9 other students that either decided to eat in the class or forgot to bring their lunch. Instead of eating, he had been working on a Fuuinjutsu tag that would seal his windows and doors while he was out. It was a tough seal to make, but was one of the only seals he could make in the class that didn't have nearly as much blast power behind it if something went wrong. The worst that would happen if a mistake were to occur would be the tag would knock him out of his seat and everyone around him would laugh. probably a problem for the other kids, but nothing to someone who didn't care about his social image. _

_He was just about to draw the finishing touches into the paper when something smashed violently into the back of his head so hard it made the blonde smash his face into the desk and into the seal he was creating. The ink he was using splashed over the paper and like he said, a force blasted him off his chair and into the wall behind him (maybe a little more force due to the amount of ink on the paper, but details). The classroom that was once filled with childish chatter became dead silent at the commotion. Then laughter broke out from the kids Naruto could only assume were the perpetrators from the unprovoked attack. _

"_HAHAHAHAHA! Whoops! My hand slipped!" Naruto immediately recognized the kid as the class civilian bully. The bully who didn't get good grades, was average at Taijutsu, and only put others down with his group of friends because they hated the clan kids, or they were (in a word) pricks. However, they normally left him alone and Naruto had no reason to interact with the waste of shinobi tax dollars. This was the first time they openly did something against him and he had to give them credit for 'going in hard or going home'. _

_Slowly raising himself from the ground, ink flowing down his face like blood from a wound, Naruto turned his head to the object that had assaulted him. It was a brown tether-ball that looked all too similar to the one that was supposed to be at the playground. Why they had it? The blonde honestly didn't want to know. _

_Getting up from his seat, he slowly walked over, picked up the tether ball, and calmly walked back to the ones who were now standing with smirks on their faces as if daring the blonde to say something they didn't want to hear. Luckily for them, Naruto wasn't one to lash out childishly. He knew that they knew anything he did to them physically would just end up with them crying to the teachers and said teachers taking their side without even listening to his story. _

"_I believe you dropped this." Naruto held out the tetherball to the bullies who looked taken back from the blonde's lack of attitude. The one closest to the blonde hesitantly reached out to grabbed the ball and looked almost confused when the blonde simply walked away. That interaction would have, and _should_ have, been the end of it. The blonde would walk away and not retaliate to the obvious bait to rile him up. They would let this go and that would be the end of it. _

_It would seem his thoughts were all wishful thinking because not even 5 steps to his chair something impacted the back of his head once again and sent him to the ground. Once again, the bullies were laughing, and Naruto had his face planted into another hard surface. For a second time, Naruto slowly picked himself up, grabbed the tetherball and was back in front of the bullies who grins were down right malicious. "Sorry, just can't control my hands now-a-days. It was an accident! Honestly!" _

_Naruto showed no emotion as he looked to the slightly taller boy smirking down at him. It would seem he made an error of judgement. He had thought not showing aggression would dissuade the bully from taking any further action since it seemed to work with the adults, but he forgot this person was not of the same maturity as the people he had dealt with in the past. He would have to fix that; consequences or no. _

_He held out the ball for the boy to take and was not surprised by the snarl on the bully's face. _

_However, when the boy went to yank the ball out of the Uzumaki's hands, he found that it stuck to the blonde's hands like glue. It wouldn't budge and no matter how much he pulled, he couldn't remove or move the blank faced blonde. "Hey! Let it go you freak!" the boy yelled, but got no response from the blonde. _

"Did you know that there are over 200 bones in the human body?_" the blonde ask as if he was asking the weather. "What I find more fascinating than the number is the fact that every bone can be as hard as steel if they are aided by calcium and other vitamins while the body grows." _

_"I don't care, freak! Just give me my damn ball already-"_

_"I didn't really believe this until I tested it in person." The Uzumaki continued unperturbed. "Much to my surprise, I found that bones were, indeed, as hard as steel. So hard in fact that if sharpened, there would be no different between it and a normal steel sword or kunai." The bully suddenly went quiet at the blonde's words. "In fact, they work so well that I made multiple weapons out of said bones. Be it animal or human, I used their remains to make an entire collection of weapons and various other tools for my everyday needs. I find it to be tough work, but I am good at making the best out the little I am given... That being said, my supply has diminished somewhat over the pass weeks due to the increase in studying and training I've had to undergo." _

_Suddenly, the room felt a lot colder the blonde stopped and stared directly into the eyes of the boy before him with his now sea-foam eyes that sent shivers up his and the bullies' spines._

_"So, if your hands just so happen to _slip_ again," faster than a kid his age should be capable, the blonde's hand shot out and stabbed something into the ball in the boy's hand. The ball deflated while the boy holding it fell down to his rear in fright. He looked to the deflated ball and his eyes went wide from the white tool that looked like a sharpened bone sticking out from the now useless piece of leather. Shakily looking back up, he and his friends were met with the cold stare of the boy they thought they could take on together. They were wrong. Very, _very_ wrong. "I will permanently remove them from your body and use the bones as my future kunai." _

_On a good note, since that day, no one ever tried bullying him again. On a bad note, his reputation had dropped even further than even he had predicted and no one ever approached him again unless it was life and death (and in their minds, that's what it would be). _

_***Flashback End***_

Despite the outcome of that encounter a year ago, he still believed that was the best course of action. Not only did others leave his to his devices, but it gave him more time to work on his shinobi skills and talk to Ghost-san. In his mind, who needed friends when you had one as great as Ghost-san anyways?

Now, at 9 years old and a year higher than his former peers and supposed bullies, he was now a grade higher than most of his peers. He would have been even higher, but due to the 'Uchiha Massacre' in which Itachi Uchiha massacred his entire clan to 'test his abilities', there were no more grade skipping for anyone—genius or no. Some say the Uchiha snapped under the duties he must have had as the villages youngest ANBU captain,some say he fell due to the cursed hatred born 'every member of the Uchiha Clan, some even say he was a sleeper agent for another village put in to weaken Konoha. Either way, thanks to the Uchiha, he put a damper on the blonde's plan for graduating the next year. A small setback, but that just meant he had more time to sharpen his skills before actually going to the field.

However, that did not mean he had to like his current situation. For the past month he'd had to continue sitting in a class he found boring and useless to his future duties as a shinobi. Everything he's learned over the years were outside the school grounds and even after being in this new class for a month, nothing has changed for him mental or social wise. He got the odd stare and glare from people who didn't even know him, but that was normal and was put to the back of his mind. The one person he thought would understand him was a Hyuuga by the name of Neji, but he was, if he could put it in a way his former classmate Kiba would say, a dick. Didn't even acknowledge him when he approached. It probably didn't help either since the next day he threw a flash bang tag in the Hyuuga's eyes to win the Taijutsu test. In fact, he went from unapproachable to downright hostile after that little 'stunt'. Wasn't his fault the Hyuuga and the rest of the class didn't understand there was no rules when it came down to a fight.

Nevertheless, that was fine with the Uzumaki. He had been a loner for the year he had attended the academy already. What was another four years to him?

That's why you will have to understand the shock he was feeling from the bun-haired girl currently smiling down at him during their lunch break. She was wearing a Chinese style sleeveless orange shirt with baggy black blue pants and shinobi sandals. She was about his height and, if he could remember correctly, her name was… Benten? Tenben? Something like that.

Anyways, from what he knew about her, her Taijutsu was just as average as his, but she excelled at shurikenjutsu and was the only one in the class capable of throwing kunai better than Neji and himself. Not the most sociable of girls, but she wasn't really unapproachable either. She's currently the kunoichi of the year and a shoe in to graduate on her first try. What someone like her was doing standing before him? He could only imagine.

"Hey there, Uzumaki-kun! Mind if I sit here?" Naruto didn't know what to say to the chipper girl, so he just nodded and watched as she sat down right next to him. She continued to smile as she watched him continue the seal he was currently working on to keep himself occupied. About a minute went by before the bun-haired girl decided to be the one to start up a conversation. "Ssssssoooooooo, whatcha working on?"

Naruto stopped for a second before replying in his usual monotone, "A seal."

"What kinda seal?"

"An important seal."

"…What _kind_ of important seal."

The blonde looked away from his work and to the prying girl with furrowed brows and suspicion. "I am under no obligation to provide you with that information, Benten-san."

The girl's eye twitched, but raised her hands in a placating manner. "Sorry, didn't mean to pry. Just really wanted to know what kinda seal you were working on is all!"

The bun-haired girl tried her best to keep the smile on her face, but it was hard when she couldn't decipher the emotion on the face of the individual she was currently trying to strike up a conversation with. Naruto Uzumaki, a prodigy in his own right, was someone she'd never even thought of approaching. In the month he had been here, he hadn't spoken to a single person and, in the beginning, was regularly called out in class by Shitori-sensei for working on other projects during her lessons. She was sure the only reason the teacher never really punished him was because he seemed to get every, single question asked of him right. Soon, the teacher stopped calling on him all together seeing that he was clearly (somehow) still paying attention despite his eyes and hands being occupied by other tasks.

The kunoichi in training didn't really care what he was working on in the beginning until yesterday when she caught a glimpse of exactly _what_ it was he was working on. She could still remember first the confusion of the scribbles written on the thin piece of paper, then the excitement that went through her body when she recognized some of the characters.

He was working on Fuuinjutsu, and from the complicated characters she could see on the paper, he was in the advanced stages; far above her own! At that moment, she felt as if she had found a kindred spirit among her peers and she just HAD to get the Uzumaki to tell her more about the art she heavily sought after!

Meanwhile, completely different thoughts were going on in the blonde's head. To the average shinobi, Tenten's persistence would immediately draw red flags. Just her demeanor alone leaked suspicion and could be pointed out even by a toddler. Her smile was too big for someone she had never spoken to, her posture showed submissiveness, and her tone was so bland it might as well have been plastic. She wanted something and she wasn't really the best at hiding it. That was OK. She was a growing shinobi-in-training and still had 4 years to master the art of deception before she graduated and was on the field.

However, the circumstances and timing of which the girl's 'curiosity' sparked was what put the young Uzumaki on edge more than her obvious ulterior motives. You mean to tell him that the day he decides to change the expired barrier formula for his home is the same day she grows interested in seals, while at the same time she 'just so happen' to talk to him when he's working on it? Well, Uzumaki Naruto was born over night, but not _last_ night and could see through these childish games of sabotage in his sleep.

Ignoring the chuckles that echoed through his head, he 'interrogated' the kunoichi in training to find her true motives. "And what exactly would you do with that information, Benten-san?" the girl's eye twitch became more noticeable over her confusion at the question. "For all I know, you could use what I tell you to break through the defenses at my home and kill me when I am asleep. Or you could use what I tell you to sell off to other shinobi to do the dirty work for you; washing your hands of any future suspicion if the shinobi in question never got caught. Sorry, Benten-san, but I see through your plans and your attempts on my life will not bear fruit."

Tenten could not help the dumbfound look on her face. Her jaw hung agape and her brain went blank as it replayed everything in her mind. "What the-I'm NINE! Who in their right mind thinks like that at that age?! And my name is TENTEN, stupid! TEN! TEN!"

Looking nonplus at the girl's outburst, Naruto replied dryly, "We are training to be shinobi, Tenten-san. Paranoia comes with the job description. Said paranoia has kept me alive for all these years and has helped me improve myself as a future shinobi. If anything, you do not fear enough and that shows bad qualities for a future shinobi."

Tenten gawked at the blonde before a sneer appeared on her face and she stomped the ground angrily. "What's that supposed to mean?! You callin' me a bad shinobi you…you…blonde loner!"

Naruto seemed to frown as he thought over the brunette's words. A second later he bowed slightly to the brunette, much to the confusion of the bun-haired girl. "Forgive me. It was not my intention to berate your line of profession. I simply thought it wise of me to point out the flaws in your thought process when pursuing a career as treacherous as the one we both willingly enlisted in. I meant no disrespect by my words and hope you can forgive me for my offense."

Tenten couldn't say anything to the blonde's apology…more like, she couldn't really _understand_ half the words used in that sentence and it showed from the strained look on her face. "…I didn't understand _half_ those words. I know you're some kinda genius, but you can't make me believe you talk like that to _everyone_."

The blonde had to blink in confusion at the brunette's words. "Why wouldn't I speak like this to everyone? I thought my vocabulary was relatively normal. Is there perhaps another way of speaking that I was not privy to 'til now?"

"No! Just. Stop talking like that!"

"…Please elaborate, Tenten-san."

"Like _THAT_!

The blonde's confusion began showing on his face the angrier the girl got. "…You have me at a disadvantage. I do not understand your-"

"THAT! THAT RIGHT THERE! Just! UGH, stop using big words! You're hurting my brain, dang it!"

Tenten had to calm herself before she tore her hair out. Unlike the time she spoke to Neji (the resident stuck up prodigy prick), this kid genuinely seemed to lack the social norms every kid his age should be privy to…great, now SHE'S even talking like him! "Just. Look. Imma keep it simple. No, and I mean NO, _normal_ kid talks the way you talk. To some people, it makes them see you as stuck up, while others find it hard to keep a conversation. How do any of your friends keep a steady conversation with you when you talk like you're just picking random words from a dictionary?"

"…I see. I did not know my vocabulary was too advanced for my peers. I will see to it to dumb down my vocabulary in our future conversations to fit the social norm."

'_Deep breaths, Tenten. He didn't mean it. He has the sociability of a brick. Deep. Breaths.' _

"However, I do find that task more work than it is worth. For one, I do not have acquaintances my age. Most who I converse with are of older age and understand me more than my peers ever have. They are few in numbers, but do not admonish me for the way I act, accept me for who I am, and do not talk down to me as if I'm not their equal. Though I am of younger age, I find their company more comforting and enjoyable than I've ever had amongst my peers."

Tenten…honestly didn't know what to say to that. He was younger than her, yet those eyes and those words did not belong to someone her age. To have no one your age who understands you had to have been lonely, right? She didn't honestly have many friends, but the few she could honestly call friends and the only older one she could think of was her father. Maybe that's why he was always alone? Because others didn't understand him? Really, what a stupid reason to isolate someone who, she believed, was just misunderstood. "Wow. That's…kinda sad."

The blonde shook his head. "Please do not show pity on my behalf. Though my precious one's are low, I do my best to cherish the one's I have and would not trade them for the world. If anyone else has a problem with the way I am, then they are not worthy of my time."

Wow, way to bring down the mood. Exactly what was she supposed to say to that? Tenten has seen sad people before, the Hyuuga princess being at the top of that list, but this kid, despite his isolation, genuinely feels the way he feels with no remorse. In fact, despite the way she would feel in his situation, she could see no hint of a lie or loneliness and it just felt so...wrong.

Then an idea suddenly struck the bun-haired girl. An idea so genius to her 9-year-old mind that it would be beneficial for both her and this poor, poor soul!

"Then how about this!" she declared, standing to her feet while pointing down at the blonde smugly. "From today onward, I, Tenten Higurashi, am going to be your first _real_ friend! I will teach you the do's and don'ts of being a _human being_ while also teaching you the various social norms that you _obviously_ need in your life! In exchange, you are going to teach me Fuuinjutsu, train with me everyday after school, AND be my target practice buddy from here on!" ...what? she had to think about herself as well. There was no way she was going to do this and not get anything out of it. It's called equivalent exchange, people! Equivalent exchange! "So, whatcha say? Good deal, right?!"

No, it was _not_ a good deal and Naruto didn't need a calculator to see who benefited more in this little 'mutual' exchange.

"I do not find this to be a mutual-"

"A good deal, _**right**_?!"

And that day, Naruto Uzumaki found his first, real friend.

"**And what in creator's name am I, Child?! A phantom of the mind?!**"

…Emphasis on _real_.

* * *

_**~Naruto 9-Years-Old~**_

_**[May 17**__**th]**_

"This time you've completely gone too far!" an angry Iruka roared, a vein ready to pop on his forehead as he stood next to an unmoved Naruto Uzumaki, a Hokage gradually taking deep puffs from his pipe, and a voice in the blonde's head laughing hysterically.

"I am confused, Hokage-sama." Naruto said in a monotone. "All I did was show up for class this morning and suddenly I am dragged before you. Did I perhaps do something wrong?"

"You POISONED the entire class! For a _Taijutsu_ test!"

Naruto looked to his fuming teacher with his usual look of impassive confusion that you could only see if you've known the blonde for years. "What proof do you have of that claim, Iruka-sensei?"

"Proof? _PROOF_?!" Iruka yelled, nearly hysterical from the amount of anger already built up from the blonde's denial. "What other _PROOF_ do I need?! Everyone, and I mean every, SINGLE, student aside from you have _magically_ come down with food poisoning, the flu, stomach viruses and various other conditions I'm sure not even Tsunade has _fucking_ heard of! You've been picking herbs and ordering other shady materials from merchants for the past week wondering suspiciously close to clan compounds and civilian households! And if that wasn't the vinegar on the damn cake, you were the ONLY ONE who showed for the Taijutsu test this morning, healthy as the day you were _fucking_ born! If that's not suspicious as all hell, then I'm not a goddamn Chuunin!"

"…So what you're telling me is, you _somehow_ have been keeping tabs on your 9_-year-old_ student's daily life outside of school grounds, dragged multiple bystanders into your investigation without probable cause, and somehow have come to the conclusion that I am the perpetrator of a serious crime that you have no solid proof of me performing? If anything, I am the victim here, while you seriously need to see a Yamanaka for psychiatric therapy. Having random delusions and conspiracy theories on the field can only bear negative results to both your health and your teammates' safety in the future... or you're a pedophile. And if that's the case, then you should be immediately detained and put on trial. Pedophilia of any kind has a _zero_ tolerance for shinobi of the Leaf and you could be looking to face anywhere from thirty years to life in incarceration."

Iruka could only gawk at the nerve of this…of this…completely _insane_ little shit! Not only does he deny the crimes he had obviously been weeded out committing, but now he's turned it on HIM? The NERVE of this little…!

"Don't turn this on me, damn it! Do you have _any_ idea the uproar you've caused? We had to compensate civilian families for the week their kids were out of school! Not only that, but they demanded repercussion for your actions that we couldn't legally do since you're yet a registered shinobi! Hell, you're lucky the clan heads found your actions amusing, otherwise you'd have every clan in Konoha on your fucking head! You're lucky I'm your teacher or I would have thrown your ass at the first parent ready to take your ass!"

Iruka finished with heaving breaths as he looked down to the shinobi-in-training who looked back nonplussed. Seeing he was out of tobacco, Hiruzen reached into his desk to grab the extra, stronger, batch he always kept in his office just for situations like this. Guilty or no, he couldn't deny what Naruto had done was impressive. Hitting every clan and student without getting caught by a soul had to be one hell of a feat. He would praise the boy if the reasoning behind it wasn't so…plain. Though this was a story he would surely tell when he returned to his clan halls, he was supposed to be the Hokage at this point in time and it wouldn't look good if he was praising the boy for crimes. However, he wouldn't deny watching his Chuunin lose his wits was quite amusing to see.

"…I… see how that could be a detriment to my shinobi resume in the future. To be on the watch-list as a potential threat to both my teammates and sensei would be a problem for my future shinobi career. You are correct sensei, and I finally see the seriousness and consequences that would befall me from this incident." Iruka seemed to sigh in relief, thankful his student was finally fessing up to his crimes like the adult he portrayed to be. "…if I did it."

The guffawing in the blonde's head increased tenfold.

* * *

_**~Naruto 10-Years-Old~**_

_**[February 3**__**rd]**_

Inside the most infamous training ground in Konohagakure no Sato, also known as the 'Forest of Death', where monstrous animals and insects alike roam and poisonous plants you wouldn't find growing anywhere else in the Elemental Nations, sat a youth with spiky blonde hair and a foam green strand hanging in front of his face. He currently sat alone in one of the few clearings in the heavily forested area, crisscross with closed eyes as if meditating. The boy currently wore a black sleeveless jacket with fishnet underneath, orange trousers with a pouch strapped over his leg by tape and completed the look with black open-toed shinobi boots that went halfway up his shins and had the cuffs of the pants tucked in.

If anyone were to come across this scene, they would be wondering just what the hell someone his age was doing a place where the death toll was over 100 every year in the village. This forest was heavily contained for a reason and was only meant for the Chuunin Exams. It was not meant for shinobi-in-training, or 'wet behind the ears kids' as most Jonin would put it, to be roaming around without the supervision of a Jonin or higher.

However, Naruto Uzumaki was no normal trainee.

He was here for a reason, and said reason was currently embedded into the ground before him. A double-edged, two handed sword that had the pointed edge of a blade, but had the fuller designed like a human spine with one side sharp, the other with vertebrae edges, and every 2 inches of the blade splitting like disks. The guard of the blade resembled that of a dragon's wings while the rain-guard was wide and had a hole in the center. You would think the blade's design by itself would mark it as 'unique', but you'd be wrong. This was no ordinary blade.

And that fact was proven a second later when, of all things, a giant centipede came rushing out of the closest bushes and right at the unmoved blonde. Just when the monstrous insect was about to close in on it's prey, azure eyes shot open and immediately grabbed the embedded sword before jumping over the incoming threat. While airborne, the sword seemed to come to life as it pulsed red before the spine-like sword seemed to break apart into multiple pieces. Many would be confused at the sudden destruction of the sword, but would be more shocked at the cord that connected each separated piece. The once 4-foot sword was now over 10 meters long and was currently being twirled wildly around. At a closer look, the blonde could be seen twirling the handle of the sword above his head almost lazily. The ease at which he twirled the weapon while making sure the sword stayed controlled showed both rigorous, nonstop training and dedication to his art.

A second later, the now Whip Blade was swung towards the insect that had missed its pray. With little effort, the tip of the blade broke through the armor of the giant insect and continued completely through the bug until it was feet deep in the dirt. Landing on a branch, Naruto watched the insect he had impaled writhe in pain for a few seconds before recalling his weapon. More green blood was sprayed over the land as multiple jagged blade edges ripped more out of the insect than it did going in. Another second later, the sword was back in it's base form and Naruto had to swipe the sword to get the insects blood from his now most precious treasure.

He didn't have time to watch the insect die since not even a second later, a barrage of kunai was thrown from his six. Quickly following his sixth sense, he hopped off the branch before he could become a human porcupine. Now mid-air, he was once again forced to take action as an axe, or all things, came spinning out of nowhere. Quickly dodging the spinning projectile, he allowed his sword to extend till it was embedded into a nearby tree. He quickly let the sword reel him in and out of the previous dangerous position. However, he was not able to rest just yet since a rain of kunai, swords, axes, lances, and many other sharp tools he couldn't identify at a glance began to rain from above. With one hand-sign, he had been replaced with a log and watched from a secure location as the log was peppered by sharp silver steel.

Now hidden in a nearby bush, Naruto took the time to search for his attacker. From where he could see, there was no one around. He had a suspicion of where the attacker could be based off the direction the weapons had all been thrown, but was sure his opponent was smarter than to stay in place when their location can possibly be discovered from their weapon's trajectory.

After a few minutes of watching and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, the blonde allowed himself to relax and close his eyes. To anyone watching, it would have just been a second since the blonde relaxed, but to the blonde he had gotten everything he needed to know in that small second without anyone being the wiser.

His eyes were suddenly back open and he immediately threw multiple kunai with pinpoint accuracy to a bush 30 meters away at his 5. As if predicting the future, he dissembled his sword and whipped it out towards just above the foliage as a figure shot into the air.

"What the-"

He was rewarded by his whip sword wrapping around his intended target, getting a squeak of surprise as he reeled it in. The human figure landed hard in front of him while whispering curses at its harsh landing. The figure, most definitely female, looked up to her captor with a sneer as he casually bent down to…poke her in the head.

"Poke." Naruto said with as much emotion as a rock. "I win."

Tenten only grew angrier at the blonde's attempt at humor. "You're cheating! I just KNOW you're cheating you blonde prick!"

Naruto stared down at her blankly as if that was one of the dumbest things she had ever said. The bun-haired girl grew flustered at the unspoken lecture and looked away with flushed cheeks. Cheating or no, asking Naruto to fight fair was like asking a brick to be soft.

"…Can you at least _tell_ me how you cheated this time? If you're going to keep kicking my ass, I at least have a right to know _how_ you're doing it."

Naruto looked up in thought for about half a minute before looking back down at his expectant friend. "No."

Ignoring the curses being spat from his prisoner, Naruto couldn't help but admire the hilt of the sword he had been using now for the past 6 months. No matter how many times he looked at it, it was still as beautiful as the day he woke up next to it. This very unique sword had been one of the yearly gifts given to him by none other than Ghost-san herself.

Yes. _She_, had told him it was the best, and last, gift she could give him and he had accepted it wholeheartedly without question of how she even got it into reality. It was just one of the many mysterious he was happy not knowing about since, secrets or no, Ghost-san was his most precious person and he believed she would tell him when she was ready. It was because of Ghost-san that he would be graduating soon, it was because of Ghost-san that he was able to have more time than most to train his skills to his fullest, it was Ghost-san who was always there to fill his void of loneliness when no one else would, and it was because of Ghost-san that he still drew breath.

He didn't know when, but one day he would pay back Ghost-san for everything she has done for him. And that was a promise of a lifetime, _Dattebayo_!

"UNTIE ME DAMN IT!"

* * *

_**~Naruto 11-Years-Old~**_

_**[September 10**__**th]**_

A couple years ago, Naruto would proudly declare that he hated reading. It was an activity that was not only extremely boring and lacked any physical exertion other than turning a page and moving his eyes, but he couldn't deny the benefits he reaped from reading a good book or scroll. Just by reading a few scrolls, he already knew more about history in the span of 3 months than he would have learned in the next year at the academy. Though he's learned much from that prison he'd call a school, the speed at which the teachers taught were just not to his liking. The fact that the school literally wouldn't teach the kids anything above a D-rank jutsu was off-putting in and of itself. So, what they couldn't (or wouldn't) teach him at the academy, he would learn at the library.

Now, he didn't just up and decide he wanted to go to the library and learn more about the history of the Shinobi World. No, this decision to read about history came straight from Ghost-san itself. For some reason, the distorted voice in his head told him it wanted to know more about the 'World of Shinobi' and basically demanded he read more about it or he would stop supplying him his 'gift'. Remembering just how useful the ability he was given for his birthday, plus how much Ghost-san had taught and saved him many times in the past, he speedily, yet reluctantly, went to the library every day to read up a scroll or two about the history of Konoha and the entire Elemental Nations.

He would be lying if he said he got nothing out of the experience. Quite the contrary. Since he became an academy student, there was a section he could visit without the librarian getting on his case. It wasn't much at first glance—just a bunch of scrolls about chakra control and hand-signs that he was not so good at. However, he came across gold in the form of a book written by none other than the Yondaime Hokage himself.

_Fuuinjutsu for Beginners_.

Naruto was hooked the moment he saw who the book was written by.

Namikaze Minato. The Fourth, and greatest, (in his mind) Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato. The man that almost singlehandedly ended the Third Great Shinobi War with the use of his Hiraishin Jutsu. The man also known as a Fuuinjutsu master as well as one of the best Shinobi to ever live.

Naruto had a dream to become the greatest Shinobi that ever lived. It was a dream he decided to pursue the day he ate Ramen with the current Hokage of Konoha. A dream that he would achieve by any means necessary. So, in his mind, whatever the Yondaime had his hands in had to be something worth investigating.

Unfortunately, he underestimated just how hard the art of Fuuinjutsu would be.

On paper, Fuinjutsu was just an art where you wrote a bunch of characters on a piece of paper and the paper would come to life to whatever was written. In reality, it was a complete complex system of Kanji and mathematic equations that one had to be spot on with or you would either get no result, or, in worst case scenario, get an unwanted, and sometimes devastating, backlash. He learned this the hard way when he attempted to make a paper bomb at home. After reading the book for 3 months, he figured he was finally ready to move on to more advanced material than putting blocks together with chakra paper and solving stupid puzzles, so he decided to move straight to the final intermediate challenge of the book instead of going through the rest of the challenges one by one like he had been doing.

One, slight, character out of place and the use of the wrong kanji completely turned his apartment floor into nothing but rubble. Thankfully, Ghost-san, like always, reversed the fabric of time and brought him back from the spirit world. However, he was forever scarred mentally and did not attempt Fuuinjutsu again until 3 months later. Once he finally completed the book, he completely understood why the Fourth called Fuuinjutsu the hardest art to master. He believed his head would explode any minute from the amount of mathematical equations and history he had to store into his tiny brain.

But nonetheless, the positive outcomes of learning Fuuinjutsu far exceeded the minuscule amount of cons. For one, his grades in class had improved drastically from his first year. He went from being in the top 20, to sitting comfortably in the top 10 much to everyone at the academy's shock. Skipping a year was just the icing on the cake. If that wasn't good enough, then the fact that Hokage-jiji himself said that he would give him the second part of the Hokage's book once he was evaluated by the current and only seal master of Konoha, Jiraiya of the Sannin, make the blonde feeling excited at the future possibilities. Just thinking about the proud face of the Hokage made the Uzumaki want to work even harder towards his ultimate goal and he was sure the old man would be there to help him every step of the way.

But at this current moment in time, Naruto couldn't help but glare at the aging Hokage before him as he asked the one question that has been on his mind for the past week. "Jiji, am I a Jinchuuriki?"

Hiruzen nearly swallowed his pipe from the gasp that left his lips. After a few seconds of choking and regathering his composure, he looked into the eyes of the frowning boy he would be proud to call someone important in his life. He knew Naruto Uzumaki was a bright boy for his age and knew it was only a matter of time before he came across the truth considering his found interest in the art of Fuuinjutsu. Not only that, but the fact he completed the Fuuinjutsu book that not even high Jonin could complete within a year told Hiruzen a lot about the boy's talents.

He could still remember the retired shinobi librarian's fearful report 4 years ago when she came across the Jinchuuriki delving heavily into the art of sealing. Thankfully, after talking to the boy, and having ANBU observe him closer every day for the next 6 months, he didn't seem to know anything about the Kyuubi nor had any interest in Jinchuuriki at all. But, like everything, eventually problems you hold off comes back to bite you right in the ass. Hiruzen only wished the boy was older before he heard the truth from his mouth.

With a hand-sign, he dismissed his ANBU and activated the privacy seals in his office. Hiruzen put on the mask of the Hokage he was supposed to be and stared intensely at his favorite 'unrelated' grandson. He couldn't be any more enthusiastic about the conversation he was about to have even if a kunai was to his throat, but from the look in the youth's eyes there was no way out of it. Better now than never. "Before I answer any of that Naruto-kun, may I first ask why questions of Jinchurriki have crossed your mind and how you've come to the conclusion that you are currently a vessel?"

Naruto's frown stayed put for a second before he spoke back to the man he currently had mixed feeling about, "I was in the middle of completing one of my Fuuinjutsu assignments. The current topic was sealing specific items into scrolls or paper tags. It was as I was completing the assignment that a question began running through my head: 'If you could seal objects into other objects, then would it be possible to seal things into other beings?'" Here, the young Uzumaki's frown seemed to deepen. "It was only by coincidence that this month also happened to be the same month I celebrate my birth that I remembered the seal that appears on my stomach whenever I use chakra. Before I delved into Fuuinjutsu, I had no idea what the characters on my stomach represented or why it was there. However, the more I advanced, the more some of the complicated formulas began to make sense. Before I knew it, I was able to piece together the symbols that were similar to that of a sealing scroll. I tried researching characters to uncover whatever it was locked away, but to no success. So, in other words, there was something sealed inside me that I never remembered putting there."

Hiruzen would have defended the actions taken by the Fourth, but couldn't since it didn't seem the blonde was finished.

"That same day I remembered someone in my childhood throwing the word 'Jinchuuriki' at me—a word that literally translates to 'Power of Human Sacrifice'. Everything began piecing together after that. The Kyuubi attack 9 years ago, my birth date, Jinchuuriki, the hate from the people," Naruto was now openly snarling at the man he called 'Jiji'. 'Please tell me, _Hokage-sama, _what else have you been keeping from me?"

The Hokage let out a breath before looking down to his unrelated grandson—preparing to give news he wasn't too keen on revealing. "Listen, Naruto-kun. What I'm about to tell you is an S-rank secret and it can never leave this room. Do I make myself perfectly clear?" he received an answer with a short nob before closing his eyes, knowing this was inevitable.

And so, he told him everything; beginning to end. From the day the Kyuubi attacked, to the eventual sealing of the beast. From the Fourth's words of how he wanted Naruto to be held as a hero, to the eventual law that was passed to protect the boy from the village he called home. Nothing was left out and Naruto stayed silent throughout. Once he was finished, the Hokage sat with bated breath on the blonde's response. He had told him everything he knew and the blonde barely blinked throughout the fifteen minute long explanation. That's why it was so baffling to the Hokage when he did finally speak.

"…And what of the Fourth… my _father_?" The flabbergasted look the Hokage showed told the young Uzumaki more than he would have liked. "…And Kushina Uzumaki?" at this point, the Hokage had his head down in shame. The blonde could only shake his head, disappointed in the one man he was sure he could trust with his life. "…I see… You still keep secrets from me even now." He spoke in a low, detached voice before standing from his chair and walking towards the door. The Hokage could only stare speechless at the boy he'd called 'family' walk away from him in disappointment. Before Naruto left, he turned to his grandfather figure with utter disappointment plain to see on his face. "I… do not wish to see you for a while, Hokage-sama."

Neither knew, it would be far too long and far too late before the young blonde ever forgave the current God of Shinobi.

* * *

**~Naruto 12-Years-Old~**

**[October 10****th]**

_**(Mindscape)**_

_Naruto looked around as he wondered aimlessly through the empty void. For the past month, he had been having this same dream without ever making any progress on why it was happening. He had tried confiding in Ghost-san, but he hadn't heard her voice in the past month either—not on the day he normally celebrated, and not even today, his actual birthday. As usual, he couldn't help the paranoia he felt without her constant protection, but he soldiered through. Now he knew there was a reason behind her silence and he was sure it had something to do with the void he currently found himself exploring. _

_It would seem his wandering bore fruit since not even 100 ft into his usual walk, a 20 ft tall wooden door blurred into view before him. The oak wood looked worn. Multiple vines poked through the cracks on the surface and the metal twirling dragon emblem in the center was rusted and cracked along the beast's neck. He would have examined it more, but his curiosity of what laid inside overrode his appreciation for the architecture of the door. _

_Not wasting any time, he pushed forward on the door and was surprised at just how light the 20 ft structure was. The door let out an ominous 'creek' before it was fully open. Taking cation, he walked in and looked in all corners. The wooden door led to an open cobblestoned corridor that stretched far _

_It was as he was observing the room that his eyes finally stopped on the steps of stone that lead further to the ceiling. His eye slowly traveled up each step until his eyes land on the throne at the top. He couldn't stop his eyes from widening marginally at the figure he saw sitting on the throne. _

_The figure, definitely a girl, was sitting on the throne with one leg up on the throne while the other dangled over the edge—one hand sat lazily across her lap while the other sat on the arm rest and held up the petite face that was smirking down at the blonde. She had long, spiky parakeet green hair that went down to her ankles, red and white ribbons tied together the front of her hair into two braids and a golden heart shaped tiara kept the rest of the hair behind her. She had matching colored sea foam eyes that shined with amusement and long pointed ears much like an elf that seemed to be twitching every now and then. Her attire consisted of a dark blue dress that showed her midriff and above her nonexistent breast freely—covering only the important part of her female anatomy. The dress was a double slit that stopped just below her hips while the back overflowed to the ground. The last notable thing about the girl's attire was a necklace made of rope connecting into diamond patterns from her arms, neck, and finally, a totem pole-like object hanging from the rope going down to her high thigh. _

_Naruto had never met this girl. He had never seen anyone that remotely resembled this girl. However, that did not mean he didn't know exactly who this girl was. It was a feeling, but that feeling rushed through the rest of his body and for the first time in his life, his heart skipped a beat. _

"_**Seems we finally meet face to face, Uzumaki Naruto." **_

_And he already knew her name. A name that had been whispered into his ear for the past month. A name he had wished to know for over 9 years. _

"_It's good to finally see you too… Sothis."_

* * *

_**~Omake~**_

_**New world, new warden**_

_The Kyuubi no Kitsune, the strongest Bijuu to ever walk the Elemental Nations, opened his eyes to look down at the green-haired woman that looked back to him in wide eyed terror. The meatbag wore relatively dark clothes that consisted of a cloak that hung from her shoulders, a skirt that went to her mid-thigh along with strange pattered stockings that accentuated her long thighs. A black plated armor covered her midriff and a strapless tank top perfectly hugged her rather sizeable bust. _

_This woman. This weak, pathetic excuse of a flesh bag was nothing compared to the many that walked the Elemental Nations. He could eat her right now. Tear down these bars and devour her whole. Make sure she never gets the chance to use his power. However, that option was off the table. There was no chakra in this new world and if she died, he wasn't so sure he would reappear 5 years later like he would in the Elemental Nations. _

_So, he would let her live. Let her pitiful existence entertain him more in this world so much different than the one he'd lived in for multiple millennium. He'd let her use his power, even if that meant he had to give this little insect the power to take over this new world for her goals and his own amusement. With that being said, it wouldn't do for him to not be the first to speak in their first conversation. After all, he had to make sure who would be the dominant species in this new 'relationship'._

"_**So, my warden finally decides to grace me with her presence**__."_

* * *

_**A/N: I just had to get this idea out of my head. Been having it in there for weeks and just couldn't get rid of it until I had it on paper. **_

_**Before anyone else ask: No, I am not going to be stopping my other story. This, along with 60,000 words of other things, I had to get out of my head were now on paper and whether or not I post those are completely up to me. Whether or not this continues is completely up to how people react to it.**_

_**To be honest, I don't really know if I should post this here or on the non-crossover page since the crossover here is major to the plot, but minor in terms of character representation. Tell me what you guys think and I will decide then. If this chapter suddenly disappears on my page, then you will know where it went. **_

_**I will also be posting the other things I've been working on some time this or next month. Want to get all my skeletons out of my closest and finally finish my other story, or hopefully, start a new story that a lot more people can enjoy. If this or some don't get the attention I'm looking for however, then I will gladly put them up for adaptation in the future just to see what other people turn it into!**_

_**The rating for this story will be T, but could change in the future when the violence and other scenes kick up.**_

_**The next chapter to my other story shouldn't take too much longer. Life, writer's block, lack of actually motivation, and multiple other story ideas dominating my brain honestly kept me away from it. Hope to get it out sooner or later though! **_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

"Congratulations on passing, Uzumaki Naruto! You are free to take any headband you wish!" Iruka said proudly to the blonde that simply nodded in thanks and picked up the nearest headband that would mark him as a Konoha shinobi. He examined the black headband that had a metal plate and the symbol of a leaf in the middle before tying it to his forehead and looking to one of the men that was a big factor in his life. Iruka looked back at him with a smile that was almost blinding. It was hard to believe this man and Shitori-sensei dealt with him for over 5 years. For that, he would show his gratefulness by becoming the shinobi he swore to become.

He bowed at the waist to the two teachers in front of him. One smiling happily, while the other was trying hard to keep her tears from showing. "I want to thank both of you for everything you've done for me. The things you've taught me will never be forgotten."

Wiping her eyes, the brunette teacher next to Iruka shouted chokily, "G-get out of here already you stupid brat!"

Letting out a chuckle while shaking his head, Iruka looked to his blonde student as proudly as he could portray himself. "I know you will do great things for this village, Naruto. Congratulations once again, and make sure to be here next week for team placements at 8 o'clock sharp. Got it?" Naruto gave the Chuunin one of his rare smiles before bowing one more time and exiting the room.

Back in the hall with the few who stuck around after they either passed and failed, absolutely no one was surprised when the last examinee walked out with a headband wrapped around his forehead. Not wasting any time, Naruto did a shunshin to the back of the school. This would stop anyone of the parents or students from seeing him and completely dodging-

"Thought you could get away, didcha?"

…His very, _very_ bothersome _friend_. Said friend who currently had him in a headlock and was furiously rubbing her knuckles into his head. "Aaawwww I knew you'd pass, buddy! Wasn't ever a doubt in my mind!"

"…Can you please release me, Tenten-san?" Naruto asked politely, not commenting on his friend's boyish behavior. Tenten only pouted and obliged, crossing her arms and puffing her cheeks much like a 5-year-old would do.

"Why don't you react to anything I do anymore~? I even put you closer to my bust, and NOTHING! Am I not _woman_ enough for you or are you just gay?" Tenten shout nearly hysterically at the blonde while comically waving her fist in the air.

The blonde just looked at her, looked at her chest, then back at her without showing a hint of remorse or embarrassment. "You must first have something to present on the female anatomy in order to-"

"Finish that sentence and I will castrate you, staple your balls to the Hokage Tower's front door and get his stamp of approval over them, _Uzumaki_."

More from curiosity on how she would actually pull that off than fear, the blonde closed his mouth.

"**Wow. And I thought **_**my**_** followers were cruel.**" the voice in the blonde's head interjected, getting a nod from the Uzumaki that the bun-haired girl took as her own with a satisfied nod.

"Great! So, we're celebrating at our usual our success at the usual, right?"

Naruto, regretfully, shook his head. "Unfortunately, I have prior engagements today, Tenten-san. Maybe another day of the week."

The bun-haired girl looked at the blonde suspiciously. "You'd better not be blowing me off to look at seals behind my back again. You promised you'd help me advance to-"

"I assure you, it's nothing of the sort." Naruto interrupted. "I've been summoned by the Hokage himself. An ANBU informed me that I am to be at his office, pass or fail, before the clock turns 3."

"Wait, the Hokage? Seriously! What did he want?! Come on! Don't leave me hanging here!" The kunoichi pushed, to which the blonde could only shrug.

"Didn't say. I can only speculate until I arrive." The blonde admitted. "I'd love to continue our conversation, Tenten-san, but I do not want to keep the Hokage waiting. Celebrations will be in order at Ichiraku's within the hour. Food on me." Without another word, the blonde made a hand-sign and disappeared in a swirl of leaves. Tenten blinked before shaking her head with a smile and walking out of the empty clearing.

"I guess I'll go tell Tou-san first."

* * *

**(Hokage Tower)**

"Ah, Naruto! Glad you're here on time!"

"…Hokage-sama."

It said much about Hiruzen's composure that the smile didn't fall from his face at the blonde's formal use of his title. It has been 6 months since that day and Naruto has remained strictly professional with him. In the last 6 months alone, the boy has only been before him three times and all three times consisted of him being at the right place at the right time. To his credit, Naruto never really avoided him. Their schedules just didn't complement each other's and Naruto never sought him out like he used to do.

Hiruzen was fine with that. He had wronged the boy more than anyone would ever know, and he would accept his punishment like the man he is. Don't force it, but accept it. Until the day Naruto comes to talk to him willingly, he will accept the boy's hate and disappointment wholeheartedly.

Still, he wouldn't deny the happiness he was feeling at the moment to finally see the blonde once again after months if anyone had asked him.

"Is there something you needed, Hokage-sama?"

The Hokage's smile only widened despite the look of indifference the blonde was giving him at the moment. "As a matter a fact, I do, Naruto-kun. I have something that I was informed to give you the day you graduated." The old man reached into his desk and pulled out a scroll before placing it on his desk. Naruto raised an eyebrow before walking to the desk. Seeing that it was a sealed scroll, he picked it up and pushed a bit of chakra into it, making something thick pop into existence to replace the scroll he'd just been holding. His eyes widened slightly at what he was now seeing.

"This is-"

"The Third Level of Fuuinjutsu, my boy. Jiraiya delivered it as a present for when you graduated. Since you've passed, I've no more reason to keep it collecting dust in my desk." Hiruzen continued to smile as he saw the emotions swimming through the blonde's eyes. One wouldn't be able to tell from just looking at the stoic blonde's usual plastic stare, but the look in his eyes always gave it away and the Hokage gave himself a mental point for being able to figure it out throughout the years.

The emotion, however, was not long lived and the boy was now looking back to him with suspicion. "Question, Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen raised a brow at the sudden change of atmosphere. "What is it, my boy?"

"Is there any…_particular_ reason Jiraiya of the Sannin does not want to give this to me personally?" The blonde asked, staring deep into the eyes of his Hokage to catch anything and everything the old man would think before he actually spoke. "I've seen him many times along the years, and every time I try to approach him, he always tried his damndest to not speak to me or even outright avoided the place I frequent. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Hiruzen stared blankly at his, now, shinobi. In his mind, there were two ways he could reply. He could tell him the truth, which was the right thing to do and had every right to do so considering the Toad Sannin's had basically abandoned the one he was supposed to be looking after all these years. However, not only would that cause bad blood between him and his former student, but he would be a complete hypocrite considering the things he'd kept, and is still keeping, away from his unrelated grandchild. The second would be to lie. Lie about any and every involvement and potentially forever losing the trust of the Uzumaki Naruto and, as much as he hated to think this title, the Jinchuuriki of his village.

"Jiraiya has his reasons my boy, and I am fully aware of what those reasons are. However, that is not my story to tell. It is up to Jiraiya to come clean when he feels he is ready and would only fruit negative results if you heard the truth from a third party, don't you think?" He would go with the third option; confirming, but slightly denying. This way, Jiraiya is slightly throw under the wagon for his cowardice but would not blow up as much as if he said nothing for the future. From the evaluating look the blonde was giving him, he could only hope his gamble wasn't for not.

Thankfully, the blonde seemed to shrug it off while bowing slightly before him. "I appreciated your honestly…and the gift, Hokage-sama. I will make sure it is put to good use."

"I'm happy to hear that, Naruto-kun. I'd wish to speak more, but unfortunately," he gave a glance to the piling paper work before letting out a long, suffering sigh. "Duty has me in a bind. You are dismissed." The blonde saluted his leader by placing an arm over his chest and bowing at the waist. He was about to shunshin away but was stopped by the Hokage once more. "Oh, and Naruto-kun?" The Uzumaki stopped himself before he could disappear from the room. Hiruzen was looking back to him with that grandfatherly smile he use to give him before their relationship…fell, "Congratulations on graduating. If it's worth anything to you, I am proud to finally have you as a shinobi Konohagakure no Sato."

Naruto said nothing. In fact, he honestly didn't know what to say at the moment. Despite it being a year, he still held resentment for the Hokage for keeping something from him that was vital to his life and by all rights his birthright. However, he wasn't stupid and knew the old man had his reasons to keep that information from him…even if he knew what said reasons were and didn't at all agree to them. Nevertheless, the old man was trying. Trying to gain his friendship back despite his reluctance. He wass trying, while here he was, acting like the kid he hated to be called.

"Thank you….Hokage-jiji." Without another word, the blonde bowed once more before vanishing in a blur of leaves.

The smile slowly fell from the Hokage's face once the blonde was gone. Don't get him wrong, he was happy that the blonde was at least willing to take baby steps to renew their relationship and he would do his damndest to put everything he had into it.

However, that was in the future. Right now, he had other problem concerning the blonde that has been on his mind for half a year now.

"…Bird." A figure suddenly melted out of the shadow on the roof and landed on one knee before his liege with his head down. It was a figure dressed in the standard Leaf ANBU and had a blank face mask over his face that was in the shape of a bird's beak. The long brown hair that was tied into a ponytail midway to his back told most shinobi of the Leaf that this man identified as one amongst the Hyuuga clan. The bird-masked individual said nothing as he waited for his Hokage to speak. "…What did you see when he used his chakra?"

Understanding he was given permission to talk, the ANBU stayed in his kneeling position and spoke in a deep baritone, "Sir, my findings were…troubling, to say the least."

The Hokage raised an eye at his subordinate's words. "How so?"

The ANBU seemed hesitant to speak, but did so anyways despite his turmoil, "Young Uzumaki Naruto has an…above average chakra pool for an Uzumaki."

Hiruzen blinked as he looked at his ANBU. "I fail to see what's so troubling about that, Bird. For an Uzumaki, young Naruto is expected to have a large chakra pool due to their heritage. Not only that, but his...tenant, should make it far more than the average shinobi. I thought that would be obvious, would it not?"

The ANBU stayed silent once more before speaking up again, "Er, I think you misinterpret my words, sir. Yes, I said his chakra pool is bigger than the average Uzumaki." The ANBU seemed to pause before he continued. "However, that's it. Nothing abnormal, nothing special, just, above average. If I could use an example, then I would compare his chakra pool to that of Kushina Uzumaki, the former demon container. When I saw hers, it was always a dark purple. Her chakra mixed with the Kyuubi's had skyrocketed her already large chakra system. If she was a battery, she could easily have given chakra to supply over 200 shinobi and still have some left over to fight a Sannin."

"However, Uzumaki doesn't have _half_ of that." Hiruzen's jaw began to slowly drop at the ANBU's words. "In fact, there was nothing special about his chakra that I could see. No taint, no other abnormalities, just…_normal_, for lack of a better word. The only thing abnormal about Naruto Uzumaki is that, as you know, his heart still does not beat, yet his body still operates like a normal human being."

Hiruzen began getting to the edge of his seat as fear began to dominate his thoughts. "Kami, you don't mean to tell me the Kyuubi is…"

Much to the relief of the Hokage, the ANBU shook his head. "No, the seal is still in place and there is definitely _something_ being held behind it. However, I have no idea if what's behind it is the Kyuubi or something…else. Without going into his head personally and checking the seal, no one will ever know what's behind that seal until it is broken or the boy somehow opens it himself; both outcomes being highly improbable considering the man who put it there. Either the Yondaime did his job a little _too_ well, or something went _very_ wrong with the sealing and the Kyuubi is not where we thought it had been all these years."

"...And the sword?"

"...Still at large, sir."

The Hokage could only let out a frustrated grunt as he relaxed in his chair and pulled out his pipe. On the bright side, everything concerning his graduation test made a lot more sense now. He knew there would be no way for the boy to pass the class if he could not perform the bunshin (clone) technique (a simple technique on paper, but becomes extremely difficult and downright impossible for those who hold too much chakra), but it would seem this was a minor setback in his plans. He had meant for the boy to get frustrated and ask him for alternate test that could prove his abilities much like they were forced to do with the Rock Lee kid. He would then give the boy a jutsu that would not only help him in the future, but hopefully have him pass the test with flying colors.

However, the boy passed, and now him passing brought up this very predicament that had him shook. All his options were too high risk and the only real solution was not in the village. Asking the boy would just lead to him telling him the same thing he'd said for the past 6 years: "I've never spoken to any fox, jiji." He'd like to believe that, but considering the multiple reports of people catching the boy talking to himself since he was 5 and the sword that basically grew itself overnight told him the boy's word couldn't be trusted, no matter how much he treasures him.

Other options were just as bad. There's no way he could or would send a Yamanaka into the mind of a Jinchuuriki. That was just asking for the beast to fry the mind-walker's brain and he'd had lost a valuable asset over a suspicion—valid, but a suspicion none the less. The Byakugan, apparently, couldn't see beyond the Yondaime's seal and the only other that possibly could see through it or get the answers he needed was Sharingan, but there were only two and one hadn't developed it yet while the other is a 'traitor'. His hands were tied in this case and all he could do was wait until Jiraiya came back to take a look at the seal once again. He let out a long puff of smoke as he realized this would be yet another secret he'd be keeping from the boy he was trying to mend relations with.

***Knock Knock* **

The ANBU suddenly disappeared back into the ceiling at the knock on the Hokage's door. "Hokage-sama, Danzo Shimura is here to speak with you."

Hiruzen let out another puff in place of a sigh as another headache was about to enter his office. "Let him in."

His secretary opened the door and right behind her walked a heavily bandaged man who wore a black cloak over his white yukata that hid his completely bandaged right arm. The right side of his face was also bandaged, covering his right eye, while wrinkles showed his gave and a scar in the shape of an 'X" covered his chin. He walked in pass the secretary with his only free arm holding a wooden cane that clattered every time it hit the floor. He stopped before the Hokage's desk and stared down intensely at the old man who stared back at him with equal intensity.

A pregnant silence covered the room before Danzo was the one to finally 'break the ice' as the young ones would say. "…From the look in your eyes, I'm going to assume my suspicions were correct?" Hiruzen sighed for the umpteenth time that day, causing the old War Hawk to shake his head and sit down in the chair in front of the Hokage's desk. "Your findings?"

"…To be honest, I haven't a clue." The Warhawk raised his only visible brow, expecting Hiruzen to elaborate. "Something is definitely there. However, it's not performing the way a seal for a Jinchuuriki should."

"…Explain."

And Hiruzen did. He told his old friend everything Bird had saw and the conclusions they'd have to draw until Jiraiya was back in the village. Danzo sat there unmoving and listened to the whole thing. Whether or not he was worried or confused, the Warhawk showed none of it.

"…I see." Danzo muttered. "And when was the last time you've heard from Jiraiya?"

"A couple weeks back." Hiruzen admitted. "I sent a letter regarding Naruto's graduation and the situation, but he currently found a lead on Orochimaru and has only sent his regards in the form of the next stage of the boys Fuuinjutsu training." The look on Danzo's face told the Hokage he didn't believe that for a minute (how he could read a man who was basically squinting and had no discernable features other than a look of indifference was beyond mortal minds).

"He is a coward." Danzo stated simply and Hiruzen could not disagree in the slightest. "Regardless, there is no way you can leave things as they are. Though I may not have agreed on all of Namikaze's decisions," _Understatement of the century_. Hiruzen thought to himself. "I cannot see him as someone who would foolishly throw away power he and his wife no doubt had the tools and skills to contain it with. Minato was many things in my eyes, a fool being one of them, but lacking in intelligence he did not."

"…For once, I agree with you, old friend." Hiruzen reluctantly concurred. "This would be a lot easier if Minato clued me in on the project he was working on, but alas, he did not and it has put us in the situation we are in now."

There was a period of silence between the two before Hiruzen spoke almost accusingly, "And I'm guessing you already have a solution for this _problem_? Why else would you come to me just when we were discussing this particular topic?" Not even giving a hint that he'd been caught red-handed, the Warhawk nodded and got a puff of smoke, thankfully not in his direction, in response. "I'm willing to listen as always, but know that I will not be taking any inhumane approaches to this matter, Danzo."

Much to his surprise and shock, the Warhawk chuckled. "There is no need for me to take such actions, Hiruzen." He admitted. "Though my views on shinobi has not changed, Uzumaki has opened my eyes over the years to…exceptions. Anything of my teachings would be detrimental to an already promising talent, even if his current loyalties are in question."

Hiruzen didn't have a word to say to that. He knew Danzo, and he knew the man wasn't one for praises; especially the one he thought the be nothing more than a weapon for years. What exactly the blonde did to get on his good side? He most likely would never know.

"…Go on."

Danzo nodded and proceeded as told. "The boy has recently graduated, has he not?" The Hokage nodded, beginning to guest where this could be going. "This may not be my, nor my agents' specialty, but I propose we place a special member into his team placement." Not seeing Hiruzen outright reject his proposal like usual, the Warhawk continued, "Be it mine or your own, we place an agent into his team, preferably one close to his own age, and have them report any sudden changes, use of chakra, and…_talking to himself _they find."

Hiruzen blinked slowly at his former teammate, waiting for the catch. To his surprise after about a minute, the Warhawk had none. "That's pretty…_tamed_, compared to suggestions you'd put forward in the past."

Danzo, of all people the Hokage would have expected this from, snorted. Fuckin, _snorted_.

"Unfortunately, my best agent, as you know, is still currently keeping tabs on the Uchiha. I cannot pull him from that mission for obvious reasons we've already discussed in the past." There was a pause in his explanation before the Warhawk began to look his age and let out a sigh that wouldn't look to off on a disappointed father. "…However, I do have…_another_ that would, as you'd say, 'fit the bill'."

* * *

**(Uzumaki Residents)**

_**A few hours later…**_

Naruto opened the door of his apartment carrying multiple bags that contained various substances. Not needing to close the door as he walked in, all in thanks to a seal he'd earlier created to close it after he'd walked in, he placed the bags near his room door and turned the light on in the area that was a fuse of his kitchen and living room. He let out a nod of satisfaction as he saw his living quarters was the same as he left it.

Piles and piles of books sat in the far corner of the room while some were left scattered along the ground and the table that sat in the middle of the room. Multiple either incomplete seals laid around the area in plastic bags so no other ink or substances could ruin or make it go off prematurely. Every piece of furniture (which was just the futon and couch) had a seal in the middle to keep it from being destroyed by blunt force and other random elements, while the kitchen area remained the only part of the apartment that seemed relatively clean. It was small, and a bit of a mess, but this place was his home.

"**I know I've seen your home many times through your eyes, but this place truly is revolting**."

Completely out of character, Naruto jumped in fright at the sudden voice.

Now, you would think the blonde would had already gotten use to a voice suddenly speaking out of nowhere considering the being that lived in his head. You'd be correct. It had been years since the voice in his head had frightened him. In those years, he'd grown somewhat of an immunity of being suddenly frightened—a lesson Tenten had learned quite quickly.

However, what made this instance so different was the voice it belonged to and where exactly it was coming from. Particularly, right behind him. Swiftly turning around, he was met with Sothis floating in midair, arms and legs crossed and furrowed brows showing disapproval as she combed the blonde's living quarters.

"**Honestly, how can a child with a mind so bright stand living in a place so horrendously disorganized? In fact, how do you even find anything in this mess? There's just towers and towers of junk and rabble! This is completely unacceptable, Child!**" Seeing that she was getting no reaction from her host, she turned and was gifted with the look of complete bewilderment on her vessel's face. Sothis simply raised an eyebrow at her host, "**What? I **_**am**_** a Goddess, you know? With most of my power restored, projecting a spiritual form is but child's play to me now.**" The Goddess in spiritual form face suddenly became amused as she positioned herself in midair with an arm propping up her head and her body relaxed laterally as if laying on a couch. "**Though I have to say, your current expression is quite amusing to see with my own eyes.**"

Slowly closing his mouth, the blonde stared at the spirit for a few more seconds before he turned and sat at the table that held his Fuuinjutsu notes. "We human's call it 'organized chaos'." The blonde replied in his usual tone as he picked up the brush on the table and began writing characters on the unfinished seal before him.

Sothis sighed as she shook her head. "**Your lack of emotions truly irks me at times, Child. Aren't your emotions a key element to your humanity? If you continue suppressing them, what will you do when the time comes for you to express those emotions to others? Especially in the career you currently pursue?**"

The blonde looked to his partner, and with a complete straight face replied, "If you are talking about _those_ types of missions, then I believe my overwhelmingly sexy looks alone is more than adequate in attracting the opposite sex."

There was a long silence in the room as both spirit and human stared blankly at each other—one looking expectantly for some reason, while the other tried to process what had just been said.

"…**Japes do not suit you, Child.**" If the Goddess didn't know any better, she'd say the slight frown and rise of his lower lip was a pout. She didn't get to observe it more since he turned back to the work on his futon. Dropping that subject, the spirit began floating round the room as she brought up a completely different matter. "**So, what are your plans regarding that old man?"**

"Nothing, at the moment." The blonde replied honestly. "All I know for now is that he suspects me of something. What that is exactly, I can only speculate."

"**Hmph, and here I was going to convince you to start forgiving the old man. Though I understand what a man of his station must do to protect his followers, there has to be a fine line in regard to-"**

This sudden thought of wariness around the Hokage stemmed from a seal he'd created to spot chakra signatures, suddenly go off the moment he stepped into the Hokage's office. The seal, which was hidden just above the obvious one on his stomach, would only pulse when there is someone or something using chakra anywhere within a 5-meter diameter of himself. Since it fused into his skin, it was easy to hide from chakra sensors; especially Byakugan and Sharingan users (you never know). The fact that it went off before he entered the room and stayed active until he left the room told his that he was being observed. Since there was no chakra suddenly thrown at him and he was sure the Hokage didn't activate his privacy seals like the last time they'd spoken, the blonde easily narrowed it down to the only clan that could have an observation jutsu—the Hyuuga.

Maybe they wanted to check the seal, maybe they know something about Sothis replacing the fox, or maybe they've grown suspicious on whether or not he is, still indeed, Naruto Uzumaki. It was all just speculations at the moment, and Naruto hated speculations.

"**-vements had been quite suspicious of late. I know I'm missing something, but I just can't put my finger on what it is."**

"Mmhmm." Naruto agreed absentmindedly.

"**Maybe more direct methods should be made. I am willing to supply you with a Divine Pulse, but only if you-**"

Just when Naruto had thought he could trust the old man again, he goes and raises his suspicion to the max once more. Are Jinchuuriki really that unstable? Are there emotions to the point that constant surveillance was a must? Despite his research about his 'special situation', there's just not a lot roaming around about Jinchuuriki, and the ones who do know something always became tightlipped about the subject. There was just nothing the blonde could do about it at the moment and that only made him more and more frustrated as the thought crossed his mind. This would just have to be something he'd let go until he had more information.

Maybe it was finally time for him to acquire outside help? He'd had this same thought in the past, but there just wasn't, and still isn't, anyone he could trust with the information and power he'd had for over 9 years now. No, if he was going to get the information he needed, then it would have to be outside the village.

Maybe the Sand? No, that wouldn't work. Though there was definitely a Jinchuuriki in the sand, he didn't know exactly where it was in the desert. Plus, it would take 2 days travel for him to get there and there was no way Sothis's power would last before he could find anything useful. He'd already been through nearly every book in the-

He'd apparently been thinking too long since the Goddess in his room quickly grew annoyed at being ignored for the minute she'd been giving her input. She rectified the situation by doing the only thing she thought would get his attention back. She flew behind him and went right through his stomach till she was now looking up and him while blocking the view of his 'work'.

"**Hey you dolt! Listen when-**"

The sudden appearance of the spirit through his abdomen made the blonde accidently miswrite his desired character on the seal he was working on. In typical Fuuinjutsu failure fashion, the seal glowed bright white before it exploded and sent the blonde blasting back into his bedroom wall. Unlike his more difficult seals, this was a simple storage seal and did not carry as much characters as the others. Therefore, the explosion it emitted was relatively tamed compared to its predecessors.

That did not, however, mean the blonde and his apartment went unscathed. The table, floor and couch remained unmarked due to the seals he'd place to specifically counter this exact situation, but the multiple unfinished tags and the books he'd had piled up were now all scattered around the room. Meanwhile, he'd been planted firmly into the wall to the point he stuck there like a nailed picture frame.

Sothis calmly floated over to the implanted blonde wasn't even blink from the debris and rubble covering his work station. "**Huh, that was more amusing to watch than through your own eyes. I'll have to make spending time outside your body a regular occurrence if events such as this can so easily entertain me.**"

The blonde replied in the form of slowly peeling off the wall until he landed face first onto the ground.

* * *

**[1 week later]**

Tenten was, for a lack of a better word, pissed.

Now, you'd think she'd be happy considering today was the day she'd finally start her career as a shinobi. You'd thing she would be happy about being on the field and _finally_ following in the footstep of the woman she'd admired all her life, Tsunade Senju.

You would be absolutely right. She was, indeed, happy to finally be able to go on the field and better herself as a kunoichi. She'd be placed on a team and had high chances of getting a good Jonin sensei from what her father had told her the lineup was.

However, the team placement was exactly what had her unconsciously leaking killer intent and her blonde _friend_ (a word that was extremely strained at the moment) was at the center of the problem. Being the kunoichi of the year, there was no doubt who she'd be placed with. It had been a tradition for the past 40 years to put the top two best female and male students in the class together with the worst in order to 'make or break' the worst. At a glance, the idea would seem idiotic to the average person that did not look beyond. However, no one could deny it's effectiveness considering the Three Sannin, Kakashi Hatake, Itachi Uchiha, the Sandaime and Yondaime all exceeded in their careers along with their teammates (even if not all followed a righteous path as a shinobi or survived to tell the tale).

Saying that, her teammates were already narrowed down. One would be Asahi Shido, a kid who was average in every way possible while having the drive of a goldfish in a plastic bag and an attitude to match, and Naruto Uzumaki, the second genius in her class even if he didn't exactly hold his emotions on his sleeve…or anywhere for that matter.

Now, that's exactly what _would_ have happened if not for the bomb dropped on her head the moment she saw the board of names displaying her student year's grades. It was not Naruto Uzumaki at the top. In fact, the blonde was NOWHERE near the top! He _barely_ made top 15, but that didn't mean a damn thing when there was only 18 out of 37 who actually passed! He was so far from the top that there wasn't a chance in hell he'd be put in the same team as her! Now she had to deal with the Hyuuga prick and the Asahi for the remainder of her Genin career all because her best friend and rival basically sabotaged himself! _Damnit all_!

"You seem to be upset."

Currently having her head rested on her palm and a not so happy look on her face, she turned slowly to the boy that was one wrong comment away from being punted across the room. His usual unexpressive face made her want yank that strand of green hair in front of his eyes out of his head. Not saying a word because she knew her temper would probably boil over, she turned back to the front of the class to wait on their teacher to arrive.

"Did I, perhaps, offend you in some manner, Tenten-san?"

_You think_? She wanted to reply, but wisely kept to herself since she knew, once again, she was almost over the edge.

"…Perhaps you are disappointed in my final scores?" her eye twitched. "If that is the case, then I share your sentiment. For even the Hokage to deny my sound argument over the academy kata is nothing short of shallow mindedness."

"You're the shallow minded idiot you idiot!" Tenten just had to snap at her _friend_ (once again, _very_ strained at the moment) at that last comment. "UUUUUGH! You had ONE job! ONE! Now I'm stuck on the team with stuck up and ordinay!" Said 'stuck up' frowned in his front seat while 'ordinary' perked up as he could feel someone talking about him.

"To be fair, the outcome of your team does not dictate the future of your career." Naruto tried pointing out, but Tenten was having none of it.

"Of course it does! Who I end up with affects more than me! If you're teamed up with people who won't work hard and have an overall bad team synergy and atmosphere, then it affects your performance not only on the field, but the exams my dad told me we're supposed to take after team placements! That's not even to _mention_ the Chunin Exams! If you have even ONE weak link not willing to work with you on your team, then you. Are. _SCREWED_! SCREWED!"

The bun-haired girl ended her tirade by slamming her head against her table; enough to make her point, but not enough to physically harm herself.

"Mmmmmmhmhmhmmmmmmmmm~, my career hasn't started and I can already see it ending."

Naruto sorta, kinda, understood what his friend was saying. He might not feel the same, but he understood nonetheless. She was upset that due to him not meeting the academic standard for shinobi of the year, she would receive a less favorable team as a consequence. He still had trouble with social norms and things of the like, but he could tell that dew to his actions, however unintentional, has cost her a smoother path through her career. In his mind, if anything were to happen to her in her career, she would no doubt blame him and their future friendship would be held by a thread.

Seeing this _obvious_ outcome, Naruto decided to use some of what Tenten-san had been teaching him about social conduct to lift her spirits. No, it was his job as a _friend_ to lift her spirits. Naruto may still lack the common sense and many social cues he should know at this point in his life, but something was screaming that this was an opportunity he most definitely should not pass up. He had a line just for situations like this that was sure to lift the mood and some of the tension out of the air.

"…If I gave you a kiss, would that make you feel better, Tenten-san?"

Tenten actually stopped her inner turmoil to robotically turn her head to her blonde headed friend with strained eyes and perished lips so straight they were a line on her face. Meanwhile, the blonde stared back with, oddly enough, expectation practically glowing in his azure eyes; definitely more for the reaction than the _action _that was implied.

"…You _really_ shouldn't tell jokes... Ever"

If the kunoichi didn't know any better, she'd say the slight frown and rise of the blonde's lower lip was a pout. "I have, unfortunately, been told something similar recently."

Tenten thankfully didn't need to ask the blonde to elaborate since the teacher was now back in the room. After 10 minutes of Shitori-sensei telling them how proud she was of them all while sobbing halfway through her speech, she finally got to the team placements where she'd be announcing the weapon mistress's inevitable fate. She didn't really pay much attention to the list since she could care less where the rest of her peers would be landing. All she cared about was her name, and her name alone.

Apparently, she had been in her own world far longer than she thought since the teacher was announcing the last team already. Thankfully, she didn't need to ask about her team since she already knew who she was placed with. She was kinda disappointed she didn't get to hear who Naruto got placed with, though.

"Team 6: Tenten Higurashi, Neji Hyuuga and Naruto Uzumaki. Your Jonin sensei will be Kagero Shimura."

It took the bun-haired girl a while to process what had just been said, but once she did, she let out a shout of joy and began rubbing her cheek against her blonde indifferent friend. "I don't know or what you did, but we're in the same team! Come here you big *smooch* lovable *smooch* blonde *smooch* bastard *smooch*" The last of her words were emphasized by a kiss to the cheek of the unphased blonde.

After some harsh words from her sensei, Tenten sat back in her seat with a grin so wide it threatened to split her face. Shitori-sensei continued by giving her final departing words while introducing the sensei of the new Genin.

* * *

**[1 hour Later]**

After waiting an hour, it did not take long for Tenten's high to settle back down to annoyance once again. The first 20 minutes was excusable, the next was inexcusable, the last was completely unprofessional. Mixed with the frustration of waiting for an hour and being in the room with two of the most anti-sociable people in her year, the bun-haired kunoichi decided to speak her mind.

"What the hell is taking her so long?" She asked no one in particular, and rightfully didn't get an answer. She looked to the only other occupants in the room who to gaze their reactions.

Neji was still sitting coolly in his 'holier than thou' pose which consisted of him leaning on the edge of the desk with his arms crossed and a leg over the other. She couldn't see his face from where she stood, but she was sure his eyes were closed—increasing Tenten's image of him tenfold.

Naruto had, at some point, pulled out a book to start reading. From the blank scroll rolled out across his desk and the ink brush placed neatly on a paper towel, she could tell it had to be a Fuuinjutsu scroll. Since she was still stuck on the beginning of the second book, she opted to not take a peek since she 'didn't want to be spoiled on her future work'. The pout on her face was due to the blonde's lack of reaction and definitely not jealousy…yea, definitely not jealousy. "How exactly are you guys so calm? I know you have the sociability of rocks, but don't you at least think this is a little _unprofessional_ of our sensei to make us wait this long?"

Neji and the blonde glanced over to the kunoichi for but a moment before returning to their devices. Surprisingly, it was the Hyuuga who spoke up first. "I concur. Excuse or no, it would not paint a good picture for the sensei if she does not set a good example for the ones that are to follow her in the future." He ended by glancing at the blonde. Seeing that he was not going to get any input, he went back to whatever occupied his previous thoughts.

"I do not find our sensei's actions to be unprofessional in the slightest, Tenten-san." Naruto suddenly spoke up after a few seconds of silence, getting a raised brow from the kunoichi and the attention of the Hyuuga. Tenten was going to retort, but was beat to the punch by the blonde, "Afterall, she has been standing in that corner since we first walked into this room."

A moment of silence passed through the room. About 5 seconds later, a transparent figure skillfully threw something from their concealed spot in the back of the room and caused the blonde to quickly drop his book to deflect the objects with a kunai of his own. Tenten and Neji were shocked for but a moment until they were both into action. Neji immediately had his Byakugan active and launched to meet the charging figure halfway, while Tenten put her training with the blonde to work and pulled multiple kunai from her pouch while getting as far away as possible from the new threat.

Neji quickly stopped and thrusted a juken strike aimed for his opponent's abdomen to start the conflict. Unsurprisingly, she dodged the jab, but surprised him by jumping right over him. He turned to pursue, but was once caught off guard by the paper tag that fell in front of his face. He didn't even have time to blink before the tag let out a loud 'bang' followed by a flashed that completely disorientated and blinded the unprepared Hyuuga. Neji could do nothing but furiously wipe at his eyes while his former adversary landed and charged his new teammates.

Naruto now had his sword unsealed from one of his scrolls and swung it at the blur charging him. There was the sound of metal meeting metal as what could only be the blur besting his sword with something equally durable. Unfortunately for the blur, part of the sword suddenly broke off and began wrapping around her. The blood pulled the sword to capture the blur, but unsurprisingly, it quickly ducked under the sword and swung its sword horizontally at the blonde's torso who jumped out of range from the attack.

Tenten entered the fight by covering her friend's retreat with multiple kunai at their attacker. Multiple metallic clangs rung through the room as the projectiles were knocked from the air and had the blur advancing once again. Though she could barely see it, she didn't need to move from the incoming projectile since Naruto deflected it from the air with his sword and went back on the offensive.

Naruto didn't let the attack on his friend go unpunished since his sword was now stretching towards his opponent. The blur showed it's skill by easily dodging the whip blade in an acrobatic display they couldn't see before jumping to the ceiling. Seeing an opportunity of her own, Tenten opened one of her storage scrolls and in a puff of smoke summoned multiple kunai and shuriken before her. Without hesitation or preparation, she began peppering the distorted air on the ceiling.

Though there seemed to be no room for much maneuverability, the blur seemed to have no problem avoiding each and every one of her well-placed projectiles. That did not, however, mean she was able to dodge the multiple juken strikes from her six curtesy of a sneering Hyuuga and the whip sword that firmly wrapped around the figure's now falling form. Not wasting a second, the blonde swung his sword and the whipped followed, pulling it's victim violently and slamming it against the podium at the front of the class. Wooden debris scattered across the room, but the blonde did not reel in his weapon—opting to wait a bit to confirm his opponent's defeat.

"You kids are more than your papers would say."

Naruto did not move at the voice that came from directly behind him. Tenten and Neji were now glaring at the distortion that was now behind the Uzumaki. The once invisible body was now fading into color and the blonde could now clearly see the edges of a kunai being held by what he could only assume was a female hand from the voice that had spoken earlier. The hand seemed to be covered by a black gauntlet that held a curved blade along the top. He glanced back at the desk that was destroyed and was not surprised to find a puddle of mud in place of the figure.

"I did not expect much from my future students, but you seem to be more than what I've read and observed this past week." Though he could not see it, the figure frowned slightly as she glanced down at the kunai held in reverse towards her stomach. "_Much_ more." She whispered before removing her blade from the shorter boy's neck.

Naruto pocketed his kunai after the threat on his person was no longer present while reeling in his whip sword. He turned away from his now lightly relaxed teammates to the now visible figure that was behind him. If there was one thing he could say about the woman he was seeing, it was that she was definitely…unique. In a normal man's eye, she would be the embodiment of many men's wet fantasy, but the blonde could not see a hint of embarrassment or shame coming from the beautiful woman before him.

No man could deny that she was a beauty. She had long brown hair held in a ponytail and had her bangs covering the right side of her face. A yellow scarf wrapped comfortably around her neck and tied in the back to her thighs. She was wearing a revealing rouge pink tunic that hugged most of her D-cup breast and had a long flap that covered the middle (and hopefully back) of her lower body. Over the tunic was a brown stomach guard held together by a red rope tied in a knot. On her arms were brown forearm protectors that had a curved blade along the outside with long pink fingerless gloves underneath that went to her mid-bicep. Thigh protectors protected her outer thighs while shin protectors went up to her knees and had on square toed sandals and a tanto strapped to her side to complete the look.

"**Huh, she dresses much differently from the other kunoichi we've encountered.** **Almost more revealing than that snake woman you ran into a few years back.**"

Giving a mental nod to his inner spirit, the Uzumaki decided to speak on the behalf of his two teammates that haven't yet spoken. "Am I correct in assuming you are Kagero Shimura?"

The woman bowed respectfully at the three recent graduates. "You are correct, Uzumaki. However, we will save introductions for later. For now, clean up this class room and meet me at Akamichi's Barbeque in no less than 30 minutes. If you are late by even a second, I will personally make sure you never see Chuunin for as long as I live. Am I understood?"

The seriousness on the Jonin's face made the three Genin nod hesitantly, getting a nod in turn from the Jonin in turn before she suddenly blurred out of sight. The three looked to each other, then the classroom around them before they silently began picking up the kunai and shuriken scattered around the room. Nothing was said even after they finished. They simply walked out of the classroom and to their next destination.

Their shinobi careers were about to begin.

* * *

_**A Few Months Ago…**_

_(Naruto's Mindscape)_

_Naruto stared up at the smirking Goddess after she completed her explanation. To anyone else, the story about a voice in your head being a Goddess that was transferred from another due to their father 'dwelling in arts human's had no business having their hands in' would sound more than idiotic. In fact, it sounded down right delusional if you saw it from a third perspective. However, considering he'd literally stopped time throughout his childhood and the fact Bijuu, masses of chakra that were said to be demons, walked this continent, it wasn't too farfetched that the one sitting on a throne before him was actually a Goddess. The fact she didn't know anything of her past before now due to 'amnesia' was _kinda_ sketchy, but the blonde could move past that for now. _

"_**Are you calling me a liar, child**__?" …and he completely forgot she could read his mind. "__**We are one in the same, child. Your thoughts are my thoughts, unless **_**I**_** close them out. The only reason you cannot hear my own is because you currently lack the ability to do so. Whether or not I tell you how to accomplish this feat, however, will stay with me indefinitely… Don't look at me like that! Certain things are just not meant for mortal minds!**__" _

_Naruto crossed his arms and shook his head. "I do not mind you keeping secrets from me, Sothis. You have taken care of me for 9 years. Though I despise secrets, you have more than earned my trust. If you say there are things that I should not know, then I will believe you without a doubt in my mind." _

_Sothis blinked down at her host before a smile appeared on her young face. "__**This is why I like you, child. Easy to please and actually **_**listens**_**. I've once read that those are excellent qualities in human males.**__" Hopping out of her chair, she slowly descended down the stairs till she was on the same level as her host. She walked past the boy that was only two inches shorter than she was and to the door at the end of the void. "__**Come, child. There is much we must discuss.**__"_

_Without questioning, Naruto silently followed the Goddess as they walked to the now opening wooden doors. Once passed, Naruto was shocked to see a library where there was once nothing but the void. Shelves filled with books towered over them and scrolls laid spread over multiple tables around the room. If Naruto could make an estimate, he'd say there were about over 100,000 books currently in this large room of knowledge. _

"_**I see you are impressed**__." Sothis mused, turning and smirking at the blonde taking in the room. "__**Your mindscape is but a world you create for yourself. Since we are one in the same, I have taken the liberty of creating somewhat of an archive of both my and your history. Though my thoughts will remain my own, you are more than welcome to come here and read the history of my land or how I came to be**__."_

_Naruto nodded absentmindedly before going to the nearest book shelf to his left that was titled 'History of Fodlan'. Next to that was an even larger book shelf that titled 'Life of a Goddess' and further down the hall, he could see multiple names that could only be the names of the people the Goddess once knew. The left side seemed to hold all knowledge of the Goddess and her life. He turned to his right in hopes of confirming a sudden enquiry. His thoughts were confirmed when he saw his name and the Elemental Nations written above certain book shelfs all along the right side of the room. _

"_Amazing," he couldn't help but whisper in awe. _

"_**Indeed it is**__." Sothis joined in next to him. "__**All knowledge we've learned throughout our lives are stored in this place. In other words, if you ever forget something, you can always come here to remember or remanence. For example**__," the Goddess raised a hand in the air and Naruto bore witness to a book on the left that suddenly glowed, removed itself from the shelf and flew into the hand of the awaiting Goddess. Naruto looked over at the book to see the title read 'First Time I Tried Food'. Weird, but he said nothing. "__**With just a thought, anything from yours or my past will be in your hands**__." _

_Naruto looked down to his own hand in curiosity before raising it above his head much like the Goddess. There was an instant reaction as something from the Goddess's side once again glowed bright before flying off the shelf and into his awaiting hand. He looked down at the book to read exactly what he had thought of, 'The Beginning of the Progenitor Goddess'. Just feeling the book brought sudden images into his head. _

_A pillar of light descending to the lands, a tall, parakeet haired woman walking the lands while passing down her blessings, multiple people dressed in white robes kneeling before the parakeet-haired woman on a throne, multiple people with slightly lighter hair laughing alongside the Goddess. All these memories invaded the youth's mind in a flash. It was just snippets, but it felt as if he was actually present when the events occurred. _

_He looked to the Progenitor Goddess who was now standing expectantly with a proud smirk on her face and hands on her hips. It was the first time he'd heard the Goddess show even a hint of pride—before him, at least. "__**Pretty cool, isn't it?**__" Naruto nodded slowly before letting go of the book and watching as it floated back to it's proper space. _

"_This is quite impressive indeed, Sothis." If possible, the Goddess looked even more proudful than before with her chest puffed out further and what was clearly a self-satisfied smirk on her face. It was as he was looking at the smug Goddess that a thought suddenly crossed his mind. "I've been meaning to ask, but do you, by any chance, know what became of the Kyuubi?" _

_The Goddess's posture returned to its regular poise before shaking her head. "__**I do not know what became of the beast that was supposed to inhabit your body**__." She admitted, sounding disappointed at the lack of knowledge. "__**Whether it now roams the lands I once walked, or it inhabits the place I once slept, only the Gods and people of Fodlan will probably ever know that current mystery**__." _

_Naruto began rubbing his chin in thought. From everything he'd gathered in the time he was here, there could only be a few possibilities on the beast's whereabouts. The first would be that the beast died in the transition. Not an impossibility, but unlikely considering the books he had recently read about Jinchuuriki (only thanks to the old man reluctantly giving him the information he wanted that wouldn't be too suspicious of a Jinchuuriki to have) said that the beast could never truly be killed. They would die for about 4 to 5 years before using the chakra in the air to reform their bodies. Whether or not the beast could do the same in Fodlan was up in the air, but he secretly hoped that wasn't the case. If so, then his father had pretty much damned billions of lives. _

_The second, and more logical, would be, like himself, Sothis had a host prior to himself and the beast now laid within him or her. He had no real proof or bases on that theory, but hoped for that over the former. _

"_**Hmmm, I would agree with your second thought over the first**__." Sothis chimed in, reading her host thoughts once again. "__**Though the first is interest, the latter makes more sense. The day of my passing should have been the day I returned to the skies above, but instead, I slept for centuries. That could only mean someone, or something, was keeping my soul in the land of Fodlan. What they would do to my soul, I could only speculate. In fact, in a way, your father may have saved me from a worse fate than my current one.**__"_

_Naruto blinked slowly before actual emotion showed in the form of furrowed brows that could pass for a pout. "Living within me isn't that much of an ordeal." _

_Sothis looked back at him as if what he said was a joke, though she was not at all amused. Then her face scrunched up and she began flouting off the ground. "__**Do you have **_**any**_** idea what you had put me through over the years?**__" the Goddess asked hotly, now floating basically in the face of the Uzumaki. "__**The first day I awoke, I was so weak keeping my eyes open was an ordeal in and of itself! I had no idea where I was or had any power to fuel my body! If not enough torture, when I finally got my bearings, found where I was and tried speaking to a child I'd thought would have proper manners, you **_**completely**_** ignored me**__!" Seeing that the blonde looked slightly guilty, she recomposed herself and landed back on the ground—beginning to pace with closed eyes and chin high._

"_**If not discovering I was trapped within a child was bad enough, building my power from nothing was far more than a monumental task. The mana from this world is drastically different from that of my own. It took time for me to adapt and convert the energy your people call 'chakra' into mana that I could safely use without tainting my little supply of power**__." The green haired girl sighed as she looked to the blonde with a hint of annoyance back on her face. "__**If, not tiring enough, I've been forced constantly for years to waste my accumulated energy on saving a child who couldn't keep himself alive if he'd been strapped down in a room of cotton—not even mentioning draining me dry constantly for your little 'experiments'. You should be **_**more**_** than thankful that I converted your energy to my own on every use of power. Otherwise, our powers would have clashed harshly and you'd be nothing more than a powerless husk that couldn't even contend against the weakest this plane of existence had to offer**__."_

_Naruto actually looked down as he remembered the things he'd done and took advantage of in the past. He was by no means a savage about what he wanted or needed, but he did not properly ever think about what abusing his only friend, at the time, power would do to her. "I, am sorry. I should have thought more about your feelings, Sothis. I will make sure to use your power more sparingly in the future. I swear it." Naruto ended his statement with a bow that made the Goddess be taken aback for a second. A moment of guilt actually passed her before she was back to her normal self._

"_**Hmph, I'll forgive you only because you put that power to good use. If you'd had intentionally abused the power I'd granted you, then not only would I have taken it away, I would have crippled us both, destroying both your life and my own before you could become a threat to humanity**__." _

_Her words, though harsh, did not make the young Uzumaki resent her. There were times in his life that he truly was at his low and wished to use her power to incite violence along the people and the world that had wronged him. The only thing stopping him at the time was what the Goddess before him would have thought of him if he had gone down the path of no return. People with power have already proven to do far more than he ever thought humanly acceptable in this world and he swore to himself he wouldn't stoop to their level no matter the trials that blocked his paths. If he were in Sothis's shoes, he'd probably do the same thing. There were already enough monsters in this world and knowing she let another rise might have weighed heavy on the Goddess's conceits; at least, that what he thought. _

"_**Thankfully, I've seen you at your best and your worst." **__The__Goddess continued, now stopped in front of the downcast blonde.__** "You stayed true to yourself despite this world trying it's damndest to keep you down and held close the little you had. Most would have broken, but you strived above all obstacles. For that, I stayed by your side and allowed you to abuse my powers as you saw fit**__." Surprising to the blonde, the Goddess gave an almost motherly smile as she reached out and put both hands on both sides of his face—raising his head to meet her sea-foam eyes that shined with something akin to pride. "__**Continue down the path you have paved for yourself, child, and I will swear to stay by your side till the day you pass on**__. __**That is the promise I make on my name and as the Progenitor Goddess of Fodlan**__." _

_Naruto, for as long as he could remember, knew that his heart never beat. It was always quiet, unmoving in fact, despite the fact that he was clearly still alive. He never really thought much of it as a child, but knew it was very unnatural for any human being the older he grew. Over time, he thought less and less of it. It was an unnatural phenomenon that didn't seem to have any effect on his life or body, so there was no reason for him to lose sleep over it. But at that moment, when the Goddess before him, his first friend and the one person in the world he swore to never betray, spoke those words to him that sounded more fact than a promise, he could swear he heard his heart beat for the first time in his life. _

_He didn't even realize she'd removed her hands from his face until she was talking once again. "__**Alright, let's put such trivial matters behind us for now. It is your birthday after all, and there's much more I must show you before the night is over.**__" Watching the Goddess leave the room, Naruto followed behind, not noticing the red on his face as they explored deeper into his Goddess's world._

* * *

_**Omake:**_

_**Byleth: Part 1**_

_**Far Different from the Rest**_

_Byleth knew she was different. She knew that since the day she 'it' happened. The day no one in her father's mercenary group, nor her father himself, ever spoke of again. She was only 7 years old at the time and didn't remember much from that young an age. However, her dreams were all too willing to remind her of what happened that day. _

_It was just like any other day. Her father had needed some supplies before they could continue on their next mission in Rusalka. She wanted to ask her father what type of mission it was since they were going all the way there when they were in Hevring, but decided against it since she knew he'd reply the say way he always does: 'it's adult business, kiddo. I'll tell you when you're older'. _

_Anyways, she had been told to wait outside the smithy they were currently getting their supplies from. Being the kid she was, her attention span wavered easily and she quickly grew bored of the doll her father had given to her to keep her occupied while he worked. She wanted to play with someone, but the only one who was usually willing, her guard at the time, Finnie, was too busy flirting with the flower girl across the street (despite being a girl herself). Bored and out of options, she decided to take a walk around the small village. She figured if she got lost then all she had to do is ask the nearest villager to point her in the right direction to her father. After wondering for about 30 minutes, Finnie, who looked out of breath and was sweating profusely, had found her and gave her a harsh scolding before dragging her back to the smithy. _

_However, halfway there, Byleth began to feel…wrong. She couldn't describe the feeling at the time considering she wasn't privy to a whole lot due to her age, but it felt like something was twisting in her heart-_

_No, the problem was her heart. For as long as she lived, she never heard it beat. Not even once. Now, it was suddenly beating _really_ fast. Faster than even she thought it was supposed to beat for a normal human being. It didn't hurt, but it felt very uncomfortable. Scared, she had reached out to ask Finnie if she knew what was wrong with her body. Finnie was a leech, but she was really smart at times and Byleth was sure she would know what was going on. _

_That's when her body jerked and she began to feel the worst pain she would ever experience in her life. She had fallen to the ground and began writhing while screaming at the top of her lungs from the agony she was feeling in her chest. It felt like someone was reaching into her chest and pulling out her heart without cutting her open first. She remembered the tears running down her face and the absolutely terrified look on Finnie's face as she panicked to find a solution to her sudden agony. _

_She could barely see through blurry eyes, but something else was apparently happening since she saw multiple blurs run past her. Finnie was looking even more distraught and eventually picked her up and began running with her somewhere that was, hopefully, her father. If anyone knew, then her father would know what to do about the pain she was feeling that was not going away. _

_She was not carried far since not even a minute into their run, she was dropped harshly on the ground and rolled a few meters before coming to a stop on her stomach. The pain had now stretched to her entire body and it felt like she was on fire. She just wanted the pain to stop. She wanted her father, no, _anyone_ to stop the pain she was feeling. She opened her eyes desperately and looked through her tears to find anyone that would be her savior. _

_What she saw instead was something she wished she could forget every day. Finnie, her blonde strands painted to her face by the sweat, was staring right back at her with wide eyes that held no light. Despite the pain, Byleth was able to scan down the woman's face and would throw up if she could at the sight. Her body entire body from the neck down was gone. But more than her body, it was where her body was that raised the already distraught girl's fear to the max. _

_A…beast, for a lack of a better word, was tearing and ripping apart what used to be Finnie's body. The monster towered over her easily and had a width of about 4 meters and length of over 8. It's entire skin was blackened and bones outlined its dark skin. Past this one monster was multiple other similar monsters raiding the village and attacking anything that moved. She was sure some of the mercenaries were fighting off the beasts invading this place and could scream for help, but she was too focused on the monster tearing her friend apart and the pain she was still in to think properly. _

_Then the monster turned it's gaze to her and she knew real fear. It's red eyes were locked on her figure and she couldn't do anything but look at it fearfully. It suddenly began sniffing the air as if looking for something on her. As if finding a better meal, it casually tossed away the mangled corpse in its apposable hands and slowly walked towards her. _

_She would never forget that moment in her life She felt fear, pain, anguish, but as the monster grew closer and closer, the pain began to become more and more bearable and a knew emotion began bubbling in her gut. _

_Rage. Pure, unadulterated _rage_. Rage for that monster taking away one of her friends, rage for the people these things killing these poor townsfolk, and rage for all the pain she was in. She just felt…so…ANGRY! _

_She didn't see her skin reddening. She didn't see the bubbling aura coming from her body. She didn't see the scarred whisker marks that were now on her face become more feral. All she saw was red. _

_Then she was on all fours and charging right at the beast that had killed one of her friends. It didn't even get a chance to put up a fight since it was tackled to its back with the force of a wind spell. She then began to use her now elongated nails to tear open the beast while it writhed in agony. She did not stop clawing at its stomach, throat, and anything else she could get her hands on until it was no longer moving. _

_Once this one stopped moving, she moved like an enchanted arrow towards the next big beast and did the exact same, disregarding the little humans that got injured by standing in her way. These beast needed to pay for killing her friend, and she wouldn't stop until every last one of them were dead. _

_When all the beast had been slain, she stood huffing in the middle of a bloodied village. Multiple corpses, both human and monster, laid at her feet while she was covered head to toe with the blood of both. Those who got in her way were slain, and those who looked like a monster was slain. No one was given mercy because none deserved any. _

_Even the human that was slowly walking towards her. His orange armor, blonde hair and…familiar…_

"_D-dad?" It was the first time she'd heard her voice outside the screaming she'd been doing for the past 30 minutes. It was deep and sound scarier than she'd ever remembered it being. This wasn't her. This _couldn't_ be her! _

_She finally got a good look at her surroundings and her eyes widened almost to inhuman proportions. The red bubbly aura had began flowing to her stomach, disappearing completely after a few seconds. But she wasn't paying attention to it. All she could see was the destruction that was once a peaceful village. The bodies that laid everywhere—some killed by the monsters, while the others…the others…_

_Before she knew it, she was engulfed by strong arms despite the red she was covered in. She glanced to her left and was met with a mop of blonde hair. Seconds later, she could hear soothing words being whispered into her ear and tears began flowing down her cheeks for the second time in an hour. That day, she showed more emotion than she'd done her entire life and showed much more years after. _

_Her father would later insist that nothing was her fault, but she never forgave herself for what she'd done. Whatever took hold of her that day, no survivor ever spoke of again. It was a moment in her life that she'd never forget, and never be able to move on from for as long as she lived._

_That's why she threw herself into training. She mastered the sword and every other weapon her father could teach her at the age of 8. By the time she was 12, she'd learned everything her father could teach her and finally took charge in battles when she was 15—killing every black beast and bandit she came by. It would never remove the blood on her hands, but it was how she 'redeemed' herself. _

_It also kept her mind away from the changes her body had went through. The first, and obvious change was the whisker marks scared onto her face. No matter how many years went by, it was the one wound that never healed over the years along with a weird spiral symbol that looked like ink on her stomach. After trying to remove it several times via a mage or by other means, she and her father had agreed to not tamper with it any longer. _

_The next was her teeth, nails and eyes. Whenever something deeply angered her, her eyes would become slit like that of a fox, her nails would elongate, and her normal K9's would become much longer and sharper than they had the right to be. Thanks to some meditation training, she'd been able to calm herself on and off the battlefield and there was little now that could anger her. _

_The final change had everything to do with her mana and body. Her mana was now far larger than even the best mages of Fodlan. However, she couldn't use a drop of it for a reason she still wasn't privy to to this day. Whenever she'd try to cast a spell, the gathered mana from the books just never agreed with her own and it always ended up causing her great pain before forcing her to drop the tome or technique. Thankfully, the fact that she regenerated far faster than any normal human being should be capable of evened out the fact she couldn't use her huge mana supply…sorta._

_She knew where all this sudden power came from, but never wanted to acknowledge it's existence. Correction, she _wouldn't_ acknowledge it. Even if the power boost it gave far exceeded anything she'd ever seen, it was power that was far too tainted and uncontrollable for her liking and she swore to never use it no matter the cost. Whatever was in her should never be out and she wouldn't give it the satisfaction of taking control of her once again and taking away the little she loved. She _swore_ it._

_However, you can only run so far from the inevitable and her current situation proved that. The white-haired teenager she had been fighting alongside had foolishly dropped her guard and weapon on the pretense of victory against her opponent. Next thing the girl knew, her opponent was back on her feet with the girl's axe in his hand and bringing it down to end her life. Being the only one close enough to do something, Byleth shielded the girl with the only thing able to spot the force of the boorish man, her body. _

_She had blacked out after the axe had removed a significant portion of her stomach. Though her body healed faster than any human being, she was sure this particular blow would be the end of her. Saving the white-haired girl was the only thing on her mind at that moment and her body moved before she could even think properly. _

_She had no regrets, however. If she didn't put her body in harms way, then that girl would not have survived that attack. She was still but a teenager and had far much more to live for than a monster like herself. At least…she could die knowing she tried her best to live for the many she had murdered. _

_But she didn't die. There was no pain, no light, nothing. In fact, she felt as if being nearly chopped in half was but a dream. That thought was only heightened by the dungeon she found herself in. Corridors and corridors or jail cells filled with nothing but the bones of humans and demonic beast. _

_It was unsettling, but she couldn't help but find her surroundings a little ironic. All her life, people have told her that her way of thinking was no different than being a prisoner to herself—as if she had been paying for the lives she had taken by living every minute to redeem herself by saving more lives than she took. It was only now that she walked through this place that she finally understood what they meant. _

_Finally, after walking for what felt like hours, she came to a stop at a stairway that led down deeper into the dungeon. Torches lit the path all the way to a door below that seemed far too ominous for her liking. Nonetheless, something was pushing for her to move forward—as if answers to questions she never asked would be behind that door. _

_So, she continued down, her boots echoing through the tunnel till she came to a stop in front of the door. The ominous feeling she got before was much stronger now as well as…familiar. With a single push, she opened the door wide and was met with a much larger dungeon that held one titanic cage in the back. Giant torches lit the room a soft golden and made the prison bars less scary than it actually was. _

_Despite the slight fear she was feeling from this room and despite not being able to see just what those bars held behind it, Byleth stepped forward. She _knew_ something was there and she knew it had to be the one who had summoned her to this place. There was no other reason she could think to be here other than to find the answers to both her current and past questions about her life. Her changes to her body and face, her mana supply, her healing factor, that day…it had to be behind that gate. _

_About 20 yards from the gate, she froze stiff. She knew something was behind that gate and she knew whatever it was, it had to be bigger than any demonic beast she'd slain in the past. _

_The red slit eyes that opened in the darkness and looked down on her, however, was something she instinctively knew she could never defeat no matter how many years she trained to fight it. As it began to rise to its feet that resembled human hands and glared down at her like she was an ant not even in his way, her knees buckled and she fell to her rear. The air became 10 times harder to breathe in and her fear became that much more palpable the more the demon before her, because that's all it could be, walked till was but a few feet away from the bars, thankfully, separating the two of them. She now knew why that feeling felt so familiar before and it made her shake uncontrollably. _

_It became even harder to breathe when the nine-tailed beast before her finally spoke; it's tone as condescending as the smirk on it's face. _

"_**So, my warden finally decides to grace me with her presence.**__" _

_With the killing aura the beast emitted combined with the fear of staring into the eyes of a being that was borderline godly, Byleth was not ashamed to say she fainted for the second time in her life. When next she woke, she'd be bathed in blood and guilt for the first time in years, followed by a voice that would be a constant visitor in her mind for the remainder of her life._

* * *

_**A/N**__: __**The people have spoken. Spent about a week writing this after the positive feedback you guys have given me! Thank a bunch! **_

_**And over 130 followers in just 10 days? You guys are awesome! For those of you who reviewed and I did not reply, then I'm sorry and I did not do it purposefully and I thank you for taking the time to write something! **_

_**Like I said before, this does not mean I a dropping my other story. The next chapter for that is nearing its completion stage with at least 8,000 words. Not a whole lot for the months I've been away from it, but read the first chapter to see explanation on why it has taken so long. **_

_**Like I said before, I will be posting my other fics soon just to get them out of my archive and to have people review them. 2 are One Piece x Naruto fics, one is a Fairy Gamer insert as the twin of Ultear and the last is a simple Naruto Isekai (with a twist). I do not plan on working on them all and trying to update them while currently working on the two I have, so don't be surprised if those are not updated in a while. **_

_**Anyways, reviews make me work harder and keeps me motivated. Will accept criticism as long as it's not just outright flaming me (those will be ignored). Have a wonderful day you beautiful readers!**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

The three Genin didn't have much to say after retrieving their kunai (not being able to clean certain object for obvious reasons) and quickly left with time to spare. They arrived at the bustling BBQ joint and were immediately greeted by a waiter that was expecting them. Though she gave a not too subtle glare to the blonde of the group, she guided them to a booth in the back of the restaurant without any problems. Their sensei was calmly sitting in the booth while sipping from a steaming cup they could only guest was tea. Hesitantly, the three walked over to the Jonin that didn't even open her eyes to greet them. The Genin all slid into the other side of the booth with the Hyuuga in first, Tenten second and the blonde on the edge. They weren't too packed in, but the close proximity of each other was definitely far from comfortable.

The waiter tried taking their orders, but their sensei waved her away and they were left with their new sensei casually taking sips from her tea cup. This went for about a minute before she finally spoke, "Names, hobbies, likes and dislikes."

Though they understood, all had their reasons for not replying. The Hyuuga was appalled by the kunoichi's way of addressing them and thought it was far too close to how the main branch treated him back at the compound, Naruto didn't because Sothis was too busy speaking her mind about the woman who couldn't hear her, and Tenten because the other two didn't.

After about 30 seconds of no one answers, the woman's only visible eye was now open and glaring at the three Genin before her—killer intent leaking from her next words that made the bun-haired kunoichi go stiff and the other two pay closer attention. "That was not a suggestion. It was an _order_."

Seeing that her sensei was now glaring at them and the two stubborn geniuses next to her wasn't speaking first, Tenten decided to be the one to lead since she didn't want to invoke the wrath of her new scary sensei. "M-my name is Higurashi Tenten. Um, I guess my hobbies are training and, um, spending time with my friends. My hobbies are learning and collecting new weapons. I also enjoy improving my Fuuinjutsu knowledge. Um, the only things I guess I dislike is traveling for long periods of time and my goal for the future is… is…" Tenten suddenly became nervous at her next words and began poking her fingers together much like a certain Hyuuga princess would do. "…t-to be as strong as Tsunade of the Sannin!"

Finished, she tried her best to keep determined eye contact with her sensei who looked indifferent at her answers. To her surprise, her sensei spoke, and it wasn't exactly what she was expecting to hear from the stoic woman. "Admirable goals. However, if you cannot proudly say your dreams aloud, then you are already setting yourself up for failure." The nervous girl was now wide eyed at the older kunoichi's words. "Many strive to be like the Sannin, but many more fail to understand the trials they must surpass in order to achieve that goal, causing them to give up that dream half way when the going gets too hard. The next time I ask you what your goals are, I expect you to say it proudly and with _zero_ hesitation."

Leaving the bun-haired girl stunned, the pressure was off the younger kunoichi and now aimed to the crossed armed Hyuuga who was suddenly paying more attention than he previously was. Knowing that her sudden attention meant that he was the next to go whether he wanted to or not, the Hyuuga began sharing his own, "My name is Hyuuga Neji. My hobbies are training and meditation. My likes only consist of herring soba and improving my skills, while my dislike…are spicy foods, and other subjects I will not go into. My only goal is to never lose. To _anyone_."

He finished by keeping the cold look in his stare, almost daring his new sensei to judge him. Safe to say, she was relentless. "You are even worse." The Hyuuga's frown grew. "You have the eyes of acceptance. Someone who understands their place, but has no drive to change it. You may get stronger, but you will never reach your full potential by limiting yourself to your beliefs."

The woman completely disregarded the scowl the Hyuuga no longer tried hiding as she had her attention on the blank faced Uzumaki. The longer she stared at the blonde, the more she couldn't help but be impressed looking into his eyes. They didn't show even a hint of emotion and he had the best poker-face she'd ever seen on a human being, and that was saying something considering the people her adoptive father trained. She would have to make sure she listened to every word that left the blonde's mouth in order to get a good read on her future student.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

If Kagero was not in control of her emotions (and it wouldn't get her immediately court-martialed), she would off the Uzumaki right here and now for the nerve this kid had. The fact that she still couldn't read his emotions after he spoke only fueled the ember within. Ignoring the other two kids who were giving the blonde different looks of shock or surprise, she made her voice was as low as possible as she put a bit of killer intent behind her words. "I will tell you this right now, Uzumaki. I do not take disrespect lightly. Now, you have _one_ chance to start over before I lose the little patience I've shown you."

Despite the ice in her tone and the killing intent she was pressuring on the boy, he didn't move an inch and she couldn't help but to be impressed at the kid's self-control. It could also be that he was scared stiff, but she highly doubted it; not that she would be able to tell either way with that look of indifference still on his face.

"I find introducing myself to someone who won't even introduce herself to be a smart move. You have no doubt seen our profiles and know doubt know more about us than we all know about each other. However, not only do I only know your name, but I do not feel safe revealing anything to someone who has been shadowing me for the last week."

Kagero didn't show it on the outside, but on the inside, she was shocked at what she was hearing. She prided herself on her stealth and would even go as far to say she was among the better in ROOT when it came to stealth and concealing her presence. The fact that this boy knew she had been observing him since the beginning and somehow did not draw suspicion to himself was honestly impressive. Nothing in her reports told her that the boy was a sensor and he never showed any signs that he knew he was being watched, so she drew a blank on how she blew her cover.

"...May I know when you first suspected you were being followed?" Kagero Shimura never thought she'd see the day when she'd be asking a Genin how he, technically, got the best of her-in her own field, no less.

"I also have no obligation to grant you that information, Shimura-san. I don't think I'd be much of a shinobi if I revealed my secrets to someone who could be a potential enemy."

The Shimura blinked at the blonde, oddly impressed by his thought process. It was very rare outside ROOT to find a shinobi who actually followed the code to a T; much less a recently graduated Genin that hadn't even seen the world just yet. As that thought crossed her mind, she couldn't help but to think back on how highly Danzo regarded the boy when he gave her this mission.

_Danzo-sama was right. This boy was _definitely_ interesting, if not slightly too straightforward. _"Very well. I concede to your point. I shall introduce myself first." Still sitting, the Shimura put a fist to her heart and introduced herself proudly, "My name is Shimura Kagero. I am the heiress of the Shimura Clan and a Jonin of Konohagakure no Sato. My likes are Konoha and the people that inhabit it. My dislikes are traitors and vegetables of any kind. My hobbies only consist of painting and collecting art, while my only goals are to improve the standing of my clan and make sure Konohagakure no Sato stays the strongest village in the Elemental Nations." Once done, the brunette bowed slightly to the Genin. "As for why I have been secretly observing you three, I can assure you that I had no ulterior motives. I simply wished to observe the talents I would be guiding in the coming future. I did not mean for my actions to garner suspicion. For that, you have my sincerest apologies."

Finished, the older kunoichi straightened herself back up and looked to the blonde expectantly. Like before, she couldn't decipher his emotions and she absentmindedly wondered if this was how people saw ROOT agents without their masks. Much to her un-shown relief, her choice of words were rewarded by the blonde reintroducing himself; _properly_ this time. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I like Ramen and I hate dishonesty. My hobbies are learning Fuuinjutsu, reading spending time with the little friends I have. As for my goals, I will say that they are something none of you will ever understand. Therefore, I will not say them."

Well, it wasn't everything she wanted, but it was good enough. "You are definitely one of the more interesting Genin among your peers, Uzumaki." Kagero admitted coolly. "However, I will be lenient only this once. Next time I give an order, I expect it to be followed. If you cannot follow simple orders, then I will not put any faith in you on the field."

Saying her peace, she took a sip of her cooling tea before moving on to bigger topics. It was time to get to the bulk of the reason they were here.

"Moving on, it's time that we move to move to our next course of action now that we are more acquainted with one another. As you may know, this team is stacked with more talent than the others. Am I right to assume you have no idea why that is?" From the silence she received she took it as conformation. "You three are all geniuses in your own right. Whether that be geniuses of hard work or academically, it does not sway from the fact that you all possess incredible talent. Talent that the Leaf cannot afford to waste. We could have easily split you into even groups to better the weaker bunch, but, forgive my frankness, the talent in your year was very…disappointing."

She couldn't word it any better if she were at kunai point. Most of the kids in their year were, to put it simple, unsatisfactory. They were but children who had ambition but did not possess the drive nor skill to carry out said ambitions. There was no doubt in her mind that maybe two or three other teams would pass this year while the others either dropped out or are sent to the Genin Corp. That fate was better than having the real world hit them when they were already on the field.

"It is indeed bias that we prioritize the more talented over the less, but Konoha is not currently in the position to care about the thoughts of children. We are still licking our wounds from the Kyuubi attack 12 years ago, but we are not foolish enough to send unmotivated and completely unprepared students into the field. It is why we broke tradition and selected no one for Team 7 and it is why your team consist of higher profiled individuals."

In other words, there was high expectation of the three Genin and everything they did from here on out would be judged by the higher powers of Konohagakure no Sato.

"However, just because we expect much from you, does not mean I cannot, and _will_ not, fail you. Just like the other teams, you will perform a test that will show off your skills as shinobi. If I see that you are not prepared for the field, then I will fail you and suffer the repercussions of my actions. I am more than willing to accept punishment from my superiors to stop children advancing to the field when they are not fully prepared."

As the older kunoichi continued, Sothis couldn't help but to give her thoughts on the woman before her host. "**You know, despite her attitude…and looks, she's actually a decent human being. Wouldn't really expect that from a woman as composed as herself**." Naruto was inclined to agree with the Goddess. Not one word spoken held a hint of dishonesty and every word was used like a sharpened kunai. She honestly meant everything she said even if she didn't show it outwardly. Before, he may have been worried at her ulterior motives (and still is, to an extent), but he believed they had gotten themselves a good sensei.

"Now, for your test. It will be simple. You will each steal a total of 5,000 Ryō before 18:00 hours."

"5-5,000 Ryō?!" Tenten stood and exclaimed, before realizing she had basically shouted that out loud in a restaurant filled with people and sheepishly sat back down in her chair. In a much quieter, yet concerned, voice, she continued, "5,000 Ryō? Don't you think that's a little…?" she left the question hanging, expecting the older kunoichi to catch on. She did, but not in the way she wanted.

"Stealth is the pillar of a shinobi. It is used in almost every mission above C-Rank and will be a constant skill you will forever lean on. I have used it all my life and the times I've been caught can be counted on one hand. If you get caught doing a mundane task such as stealing money from civilians, then you have no right to call yourselves shinobi."

More beaten than she was before, Tenten slumped down slightly in her chair. Nonplussed by the bun-haired change in mood, the kunoichi continued. "Before you start, I will need to first confiscate your wallets and/or purses." Now it was time for the Hyuuga and Uzumaki to get defensive as they glared in their own way at the older kunoichi. "I assure you, I only take them for the soul purpose of the test. It would not be very challenging if you could simply take money from your own storage and add it to your collection… That being said, you are also not allowed to ask anyone for money, nor are you allowed to retrieve funds from your homes. You are only allowed to steal. Nothing more."

The three Genin looked at the older kunoichi warily before they all conceded and pulled out their wallets. After retrieving every dime from her Genin, she nodded in satisfaction before safely putting them, of all places, into her chest. An actually that did not go unnoticed by multiple people starring at their table. "When you have completed the task, you will rendezvous at Training Ground 3 where I will be waiting for you. Anyone who fails to complete the task before 18:00 hours will immediately fail and be sent back to the academy. Any questions?"

Almost immediately, Tenten's hand went up like a student in a classroom. "If you are going to be at Training Ground 3, how exactly will you know if we completed the task ourselves or not?"

Kagero blinked slowly at her student before replying dryly, "I just will."

Ignoring the incredulous looks on her student's faces, the kunoichi slid out of her booth and calmly strode out of the restaurant, getting multiple glances from both male and female due to her more than revealing attire.

Not long before she was gone, the waiter was back at their table and looking down at them with that same rehearsed smile on her face. "I'm guessing your companion has left you guys in charge of the bill?"

The three Genin blinked up at the awaiting waitress. It did not take very long for them to realize that they had just been had. It would seem their new sensei had a sense of humor behind that stoic mask

* * *

**(4 hours till deadline)**

After an hour of 'working' off the 500 Ryō their sensei had left behind (only thanks to Choza Akimichi, the Akimichi Clan leader, taking pity on them), the three Genin decided against splitting off and chose to work together over individually since their sensei didn't specify whether or not they could or could not. The goal was for each of them to, somehow, steal 5,000 Ryō and have a total of 15,000 Ryō by 6 o' clock or they would be sent back to the academy.

Right now, Naruto agreed to start. Without much preamble, he hopped through the village with his fellow peers close behind until they were at the Hokage tower. Confused, Neji and Tenten looked to the back of their blonde companion before he turned to them. "Wait here. This will not take long." Not waiting for a reply, the blonde walked into the building, leaving two silent team members who looked to each other for clarification, but got none.

As the blonde said, it did not, indeed, take too long. He was probably in the building about 3 minutes before he was casually walking back out the same way he walked in. The Higurashi and Hyuuga looked to the blonde with expectation. Without hesitation, the blonde reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of cash secured with a rubber band. They did not need to count the stack to know it was more than enough.

"I would ask how you did it if I wasn't sure you wouldn't give me an answer." Tenten said exasperatedly, getting minuscule smile from the blonde.

Next was the Hyuuga. Like Naruto, he did not acquire the help of his two fellow Genin. Instead, he opted to use his Byakugan to search for the deeper pockets among one of the richer parts of Konoha. He showed little to no effort or sympathy in stealing from a drunk Chuunin stumbling out of a bar within who could only be a civilian woman that was only there to keep his bed warm for the next few hours or so. Only needing a bit more, he pickpocketed another man he had purposefully run into and scared off with his cold Hyuuga stare that only his clan could pull with their pupil-less eyes.

Within the span of an hour, Naruto and Neji had more than was needed for their share of the total. Now, it was Tenten's turn and she was more than motivated to show what she was capable of. Like the two boys, she opted to work on her own. She wasn't really the best when it came to stealth, but that didn't mean she was completely useless at the art. She had never stolen a thing in her 13 years of living, but she was sure it couldn't be too hard considering how easy the Hyuuga pulled it off. All she had to do was stealthily reach into the wide pockets of a rich guy and she would be golden. Easy, right?

* * *

**(1 hour till deadline)**

Oh, how wrong she was. Her first target, a rich man going from the fine silk and clothing he wore, almost immediately caught her snooping around in his pockets and was basically making a scene while Tenten could only quickly retreat before the village police arrived. The only good thing that came out of that encounter was the fact that she was using a henge. She didn't want to imagine what would become of her if she was known around the village for being a thief, so she disguised herself as a merchant she'd saw years ago from the sand. She had probably ruined his reputation now, but that thought wasn't in her mind at the time.

Her next target was, of all things, a Chuunin whose wallet was hanging from his back pocket and just waiting to be stolen. Touching the wallet was easy enough. Getting the wallet out of the pocket without alerting the Chuunin was shown to be the problem since not even halfway out, the Chuunin's hand shot behind him and squeezed hard on the wrist of the henged Tenten who transformed back from the pain of the Chuunin's grip. Said shinobi just so happened to be none other than Iruka Yumino who was grocery shopping and looked more than surprised that one of his former students he had personally graduated was now pickpocketing him. To make things worst, she didn't exactly think her new sensei would think too kindly if she 'revealed her mission to the open' so she could do nothing as her sensei openly berated her while passersby's laughed at her expense.

Her last target before she was just about to throw in the towel and ask for help from her fellow Genin was a passed out drunk at a bar. The task was easy. All she had to do was take the man's wallet while no one was looking. Fairly simple on paper. However, not only was she caught by the bar tender who 'just so happened' to be a retired shinobi who saw her henge a mile away, but she was kicked out of said bar without a dime to show for her work. It was then that she was forced to admit that this just wasn't her level of expertise and she hung her head in shame. There was only an hour left before 6 o'clock and she had nothing to show for her hard work. If she didn't get the money she needed within the next hour, then she would…her dreams would...

Looking down at the bun-haired girl from a nearby rooftop, Neji spoke the first words he'd had with the blonde next to him in the past 2 hours of tailing their third teammate. "I do not believe I've ever seen a more pitiful display."

Despite the clear judgement put behind the Hyuuga's words, both Naruto and Sothis were inclined to agree. The problem with Tenten was the targets she chose. Most were far out of her league or straight-out unapproachable in any situation. She was far too straightforward with her approaches and not even a blind man wouldn't be able to point out her awkward movements. The blonde knew that when it came to holding a weapon, she was a genius. However, that genius did not spread to any of her other skills and it showed more often than not.

"**Poor girl. It is as if fate has chosen this particular test to hinder her advancement**." Sothis interjected, _almost_ sounding like she pitied the girl.

"You sound like Neji." Naruto mused, getting a visual in his head of the Goddess crossing her arms and turning her head hotly.

"**Hmph, I will ask that you never compare me to that narrow-minded child. I am simply comparing her situation to a stigma you humans use to preordain events by higher powers, while he has convinced himself that it is an unbreakable thread that binds current and future events together. Humans have shown me time and time again in the past that fate is reversible and the way he preaches events as if they had already been written is both shameful and obnoxious. Our 'situation' and my powers should more than prove my words.**"

The blonde nodded mentally at the Goddess before he lept off the rooftop and landed in front of the melancholic brunette kneeling on the ground with her arms wrapped around her knees and her face in her lap. Neji followed suit, staying further from his two 'teammates' with crossed arms and a non-sympathetic look on his face.

"Do you require assistance?" the blonde asked, getting a glare/pout/pleading look from his best 'human' friend. The brunette rubbed her eyes and nodded at the blonde. They both then looked to the Hyuuga who stared back at them unflinchingly.

"If you are done crying, I suggest we hurry. There's only 45 minutes left before the deadline and I have no intentions of failing this test due to your incompetence."

Tenten frowned at the Hyuuga's tone, but let it go… for now, at least. There was no time to argue and the Hyuuga had a point. She was the only one who had failed at her task and wasting time would do her no good. She would just be thankful the Hyuuga was willing to put aside his pride in order to pass this test. "Fine, then show me how its done, oh Great One." She said, sarcasm dripping out of the last few words.

The Hyuuga did not comment. Instead, his eyes closed for but a moment before they shot back open with veins visible around his eyes. His Dojutsu now active, he began scanning the area around them in search of a quickly and easy target. However, they were low on time and it wouldn't benefit them to steal from normal civilians considering most are known to not carry too much on them at once (for obvious reasons). If not bad enough, they did not have time to cover their tracks like they would have in any other situation. Therefore, their only hope is to rob a shinobi—also known to be walking banks. A difficult task, but not impossible.

Since it was getting dark, most ninja at this time of day were either heading home, to the bar, or were ANBU. Since there was no way in hell they were robbing ANBU and none of them were confident in getting away with a henge around so many shinobi, they would have to catch the first shinobi (preferable a Chuunin) he could spot.

Just when he was about to move in order to change his current surroundings, he stopped and saw a thick wad of green in the pockets of a anatomy that was no doubt female. From the amount of chakra he could see coming from the person, he immediately could tell that this was a shinobi; Jonin, no less, and pockets deeper than the rich snobs he'd robbed. She was not the ideal target, but beggars couldn't be choosers. Morphing his Dojutsu to the point where he could now see the skin of the woman he had spotted, he found that she was a purple haired woman that currently had both of her hands occupied by two sticks that could only be holding the round form of dango.

Confirming his target, he looked to his two cohorts to give the news. It was only when they had their plan and Naruto was in front of Neji's 'target' that the blonde probably should have suggested a _better_ victim. One that probably wouldn't rip their throats out and wouldn't actively hunt them down for the next couple of months.

* * *

**(30 minutes till deadline)**

Life was good for one Mitarashi Anko. How could it not be? She, yet again, dodged a bullet that was teaching snot nosed brats as a Jonin sensei, got more than enough kick out of the 'victim' today at T&I, had a drinking buddy tonight that could lead to 'fun' later if that rack she showed off wasn't just for show, and currently had two dango sticks in both hands, skewered with 6 of the sugary delicious treats. How could she _not_ be enjoying the life Kami has given her when everything was going so well?

As a matter a fact, she was enjoying it so much that she almost missed the small gaki digging through her coat pockets with the skills of an academy student. She wasn't exactly terrible considering she most likely didn't receive any training on how to perform pick pocketing properly, but she was good enough to pass as a Genin and that, in and of itself, deserved praise. However, she'd long since had the art of stealth down to an artform and she'd be damned if she was robbed by a gaki that hadn't even paid taxes yet..

"Ya better have a _damn_ good reason to be in my pockets, gaki."

To her sadistic glee, the hand in her coat pocket completely froze at her voice. It would seem her robber had the skills, but not the brains to back out when things went south. Turning to look at her would-be thief, she was not surprised to see a messy haired kid not even 8 years of age looking back up at her with horror-stricken eyes. The Tokubetsu Jonin couldn't blame the (most likely) homeless kid either since she'd probably have the same reaction if she tried stealing from a shinobi at her age and got caught.

"S-sorry, I-I'm just r-really hunger." The girl stammered out, most likely in an attempt to guilt trip the purple haired kunoichi. "P-please d-d-don't hurt me."

The way the kid kept looking down and constantly trembled as if she was in Yuki no Kuni with no jacket, probably would have pulled on the heart strings of most, but that was sadly lost on the Tokubetsu Jonin who had learned in T&I that guilt and emotions were a big 'Nono'. However, Anko wasn't always cruel. In fact, the gaki was lucky she caught her in such a great mood. Otherwise, she wouldn't be leaving with just a slap on the wrist.

"Tell ya what, since ya caught me in a good mood, I won't skin ya alive for trying to rob me." She said sweetly, patting the head of the petrified 8-year-old to get another point across. "However, I'll give ya a little advice for the future since you seem to have the skills: Never pick a target that looks too easy, and _never_ pick someone as sexy as myself again. Ya never know what you just might put your hand into. Capeesh?" She emphasized her point by allowing a snake to come slithering out of one of her sleeves. The kid merely took a glance at the snake and began nodding rapidly.

Next, Anko did something absolutely anyone who knew her would have drop their jaws at. She held out one of her dango sticks to the little girl who looked at it longingly. "Take one, as a token for nearly catching me with my skirt down." The kid looked hesitantly at the dango stick before looking back to the smiling kunoichi. Tentatively, she reached for the dango stick and flinched when the stick touched her hand, expecting the older woman to strike her. However, nothing happened and the smile didn't leave the kunoichi's face even when the stick was no longer in her hand.

Once the stick was no longer in her hand, the Tokubetsu Jonin gave the kid one more earsplitting grin before standing to her full height. "Now get outta here, kid. And don't ever forget what I told ya." Not waiting another second, the kid gave three short bows before turning on her heels and sprinting towards the nearest alley. Just when the kid was about to enter the alley, the Tokubetsu Jonin threw in one last jab for kicks, "And yer henge needs work, ya damn gaki!" Anko allowed a snort of amusement at the kid suddenly freezing mid-step before disappearing into the alley seconds later. Whoever that kid was, they would definitely have a great future as a shinobi if just given the chance. However, that was none of her business and it was high time she was back on her way.

"That was oddly nice of you." Anko turned to the sudden voice and didn't drop the grin as one her besties was currently walking towards her.

"Sup, babe!" She greeted in typical Anko fashion, getting a sigh and shake of the head from the Yuhi approaching her. "How'd your first day of babysittin' go?"

Kurenai Yuhi, potential Jonin sensei of Team 8, shook her head disappointedly. "Terrible. Those kids had no right being in the academy, much less graduating to Genin. Everything from their ambitions to their outlook on shinobi life was nothing less than disgraceful. There is no chance in hell they will pass tomorrow's test."

Anko smirked at her best friend's clear frustration as they began walking in the opposite direction of where the purple haired kunoichi was formally walking. "Told ya it wouldn't be worth your time, babe. Shoulda listened."

The black haired kunoichi let out a chuckle before getting back to another subject, "Back to the previous topic. I never thought I'd see the day you'd willingly hand over a stick of dango. Any particular reason you'd go back on what you called your 'shinobi code'?"

Her friend simply shrugged at her. "What can I say. The kid impressed me. Plus, that just means I have a reason to go back and get another serving!" she said excitedly as they headed back to the dango shop the purplette had just recently left from.

"Ah! If it isn't my number one customer once again! Back for another serving I presume?" The round man at the dango stand said excitedly as the two kunoichi approached.

"Ya bet yer fat ass I am! And make it four for my date!"

"Ah, Yuhi-san! Always a pleasure to see you! The brat still giving you trouble?"

Kurenai smiled. "A pleasure as always, Hiro-san. And no, I came here out of my own free will…this time, at least."

"HAHAHAHA! You two kill me every time! Bring that Asuma guy over next time for a date and I swear to give you two a discount!" Kurenai put a hand over her face as the man revealed her 'not so secret' secret. How exactly everyone knew about her and Asuma's relationship when they have been keeping it on the down low for the past 2 years was a mystery only every other shinobi in Konoha would know.

"Hey, fatass! Less talking, more cooking! Mama's gotta eat, y'know!" Anko said boisterous, seeing the uncomfortable look on her friend's face. Instead of getting angry at the jab, the round man simply laughed once again and went on to make the treats the Tokubetsu Jonin called 'the food of the Gods'. Once done, her eyes were practically sparkling when the sugary treats were presented before her.

"Alright, that will be 100 Ryō, ladies!"

Kurenai went into her purse to get her money, but Anko grabbed her by the wrist before she could fetch it. "Don't worry, babe! Today's round is on me!"

The Yuhi raised an eyebrow in amusement at the excitable kunoichi. "Oh? You sure about that?"

"Sure am! It's a great day, so I'll…I'll…"

Kurenai continued watching in silent mirth as Anko blinked multiple times before furiously patting down every pocket on her person. After a few seconds of realizing that her purse was, indeed, gone, she slowly straightened and looked into space blankly. Everyone within 30 feet of the stand began to sweat and move faster to their destinations as they suddenly felt doom emitting from somewhere nearby. There was only one culprit that came to the purplette's mind and it only made her angrier that she had been duped by someone who didn't even know what a condom was.

"THAT LITTLE SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!"

While her best friend was having a breakdown, Kurenai couldn't help but think back on what she had saw before approaching the T&I specialist. Specifically, the henged blonde that stealthily pickpocketed her friend without her being any the wiser. The little girl was the distraction while the Hyuuga on the roof kept lookout for interference. There were a few holes in the planning, but Kurenai would give credit where credit was due. It was a well thought out plan with high lost of caught. In fact, if Anko wasn't in such a good mood (at the time at least), then she was sure this would have never gotten pass faze one.

It would seem the Hokage made quite the team this year.

* * *

**(10 minutes till deadline)**

"Kami, I thought my heart was gonna explode!" Tenten suddenly exclaimed as they walked to the place their sensei would be waiting. "Thanks, guys. You really did save my butt back there. I swear I'll never forget this."

"We were lucky, plain and simple." The Hyuuga huffed. "If that other Jonin sensei had been anyone else, then we'd have wasted that time for nothing. In the future, I ask that you train all of your skills and not just the one's that fits your fancy, Higurashi."

"Hey! I tried, OK?" the girl defended. "Don't blame me if I don't have skills similar to you genius pricks! Naruto has been doing this for years and you have eyes that can literally see through anything!" the brunette suddenly paused at her statement, then narrowed her eyes and hid half her face behind the wad of cash she currently held. "…pervert."

The words immediately garnered a reaction from the Hyuuga in the form of a quick head turn and glare that could burn through steel. "Do not _ever_ insinuate that I'd use my eyes for such debauchery."

The kunoichi's eyes narrowed further at the Hyuuga's defensive tone, "You had to find the money some way. That our target 'just so happened' to be a woman doesn't really defend you."

Neji went to retort, but thought better of it and turned from the grinning kunoichi hotly. "I refuse to fuel your twisted sense of humor. I've said my peace. The only thing left is for you to actually deliver in our future tasks instead of having Uzumaki and myself pick up the slack for you."

Grin now gone, Tenten snapped back, "Stop calling me useless you prick! I'm not useless!"

"I speak only the truth. If you'd performed better, then I'd have no reason to speak facts. If you are insulted by that, then that is a personal issue."

"It's not personal! You're just being an ass!"

"Hmph, facts are facts. Nothing more."

"And a turd is still a turd no matter how clean you make it! How about next time you try keeping your mouth shut if you have nothing good to say, Hyuuga!"

"**Goooooods these two are like spouses! Will they just kiss already and stop rupturing my ears!**" Naruto gave no response as the argument continued between the two Genin, which only further aggravating the Goddess in his head. Eventually, and thankfully, it stopped and the two Genin were, unknowingly, spared from divine punishment. However, it wasn't by choice of either party. The Hyuuga just suddenly stopped, causing his debating partner and other acquaintance to also pause in their journey. He now had his Byakugan active and was glaring through the forestry in front of him.

"We are surrounded."

As if those words were a switch, multiple figures fell from trees and dashed at the surprised Genin. Naruto had his sword summoned in his hands faster than he'd ever done before and blocked the tanto that aimed to split him in half. The only thing he could glimpse from his opponent was a face-mask and a foreign headband before something impacted him in the side and sent him flying to the side. His past training allowed him quickly readjust himself midair and land on his feet while backpedaling away from the two enemies that were quickly on him. Aiming to gain some space between him and his attackers, he allowed his sword to break apart and swung it horizontally at his incoming enemies. Surprisingly, they did not seem the least perturbed by his actions and simply jumped high over the sword and used a nearby tree to catapult to the blonde.

Naruto was once again forced to retreat from the speed of his enemies. In his retreat, he had to deflect multiple kunai thrown by the foreign shinobi with the base of his sword as he tried to get some room to properly counterattack. Reeling in his sword, he got enough time to reach into his pouch and pull out a couple of smoke bombs and throw it to the ground right when his attackers closed in. Hidden by the black smoke, he quickly retreated to the trees and began running through multiple one handed seals as he turned to release a jutsu into the smoke.

Just when he was about to finish his seals, something fast and sharp whistled out of the smoke and headed straight for the wide eyed Uzumaki. Forced to abandon his jutsu, Naruto jumped away from the object that he could now identify as a windmill shuriken and watched as his attackers jumped right out of the smoke with their intent clear to see. Seeing that he was vulnerable in the air, the foreign shinobi threw multiple kunai with pinpoint accuracy at the airborne Genin. Thinking quick, the Uzumaki extended his whip sword till the tip was now embedded into a nearby tree and quickly reeled himself in and out of his predicament. He thankfully was not skewered by the incoming projectiles, but he did not get out unscathed; evidence by the blood that leaked from a cut on his upper arm.

The second his feet met surface, he turned on his heels and tactically retreated away from the threat—dropping multiple smoke bombs to hopefully cover his escape. He would get nowhere fighting them head on. It wasn't his preferred style of combat and he'd be a fool to continue that fight when they were clearly Jonin level and he was wholly unprepared.

"**They fight as if they already know your weaknesses**." Sothis pointed out gravely. "**Do you think that woman is responsible for these men?**"

Weaving through the trees to remain unpredictable, Naruto mentally shook his head as he reached into his pouch. "I am unsure. Though those kunai were thrown at vitals, their killer intent is strangely absent. I am inexperienced when it comes to fighting Jonin, so I do not know for sure what to be looking for." Finding what he wanted, the Uzumaki swiftly pulled it out and began making his patterns through the woods a bit more predictable. "Subjugation and regrouping with the others is paramount at the moment. Test or no, having a Pulse ready for use would be wise."

"**Already covered, Child.**"

Reassured that his life was in good hands, the expected happened from his now predicable movements and the shinobi from before threw multiple kunai at his blindside. Jumping into the air, he waited for what his pursuers would do and a sense of satisfaction overcame him as he glanced over his shoulder and saw the shinobi leap after him. Quickly doing a 180 midair, he turned and unraveled the scroll in his hand. The multiple characters on the scroll were shown to the two attackers and a second later they came to life and they literally stretched out of the paper.

He'd have to give the shinobi credit for quick thinking because with just a split second decision, they were able to avoid their predicament by facing each other and using each other as a springboard to push them out of the way of the arced attack. Though they were out of range of the jutsu, that did not stop the ink from spreading towards the attackers, looking more like a sea of parasites hungrily reaching for anything in range to consume. Meanwhile, it had given the Uzumaki the space he needed and he finally took that advantage by running through a few hand-signs on the branch he currently occupied. He stopped on the snake hand sign and only allowed his awaiting chakra to leave his hands when he slammed them into the moving ink that had landed on his purchase.

'_Fuuinjutsu: Kisei Umi (Sealing Technique: Parasitic Sea)_!'

There was an immediate reaction in the form of the gobs of ink spilling from the blondes feet and connecting with its portion that had long hit the ground below. The ink seemed to come alive even more than before and become twice as fast as it reached out to the stunt shinobi that looked at it with wide eyes. The sea of ink turned into multiple appendages and forms like arms, legs, even maws as it tried catching/consuming it's targets that were now turning to run away.

Naruto would have none of that however and quickly pulled two kunai out of his pouch and added a bit of his chakra into the tags before tossing them towards his now retreating attackers. The foreign ninja, predictably, dodged the projectiles, but their eyes were widened when they saw the tags attached. Before they could even raise their hands to substitute away, the tags activated and released a burst of wind that stopped their momentum flat and sent them both flying painfully into nearby trees. Being incapacitated for but a moment allowed the parasitic sea to quickly catch up to the foreign shinobi and Naruto watched as the ink splashed onto the men. Like a parasite, the ink spread across the men's bodies and they could do nothing as it began wrapping around them like a web. It only took 3 seconds for the ink to completely cocooned them.

Quickly, the Uzumaki jumped off his perch and landed where the two now captured lay and slapped two seals over their bodies. The seals were immediately activated on contact and the cocoons finally stood still. Its work done, the leftover ink began retreating back to the scroll it left from currently in the Uzumaki's hand. Once it was sealed again, the blonde placed the scroll back into its home and wasted no time.

***CRASH***

The world stood still and was painted a purple hue aside from the blonde that walked calmly to one of the cocoons. "**Impressive, if not slightly disturbing.**" The voice of Sothis praised from right next to him. He glanced to the Goddess now floating next to him before kneeling down to the cocoon now before him. The ink on the man regained it's black tint and began to melt off of it's victim at the touch of it's creator.

Naruto was now able to get a better look at the man. He was wearing an outfit that wouldn't look off on a Kumo ANBU. It was all black and had a blank headband that showed no allegiance, but Naruto would never forget the clothing that was used the same day he experienced his first 'death'. Removing everything on the man, clothing included, Naruto was a little disappointed to find nothing on him aside from some ninja tools and a tattoo along his arm that was in the shape of what could only be a moon with roots sprouting from the bottom. He'd never seen that symbol before, so he thought little of it.

"**Do you intend to interrogate him?**"

Naruto thought about it, but shook his head. "I have no experience in interrogation, and if this man is truly ANBU, then I'm sure there is little to nothing I can get out of him." The Uzumaki seemed to contemplate something before looking to the Goddess. "How far can you stray from me?"

Sothis raised an eyebrow before putting a finger to her chin and thinking. "Hmmmm, I am unsure At the most, a mile. Any more than that and I am unsure if I can maintain this form. Why do you ask?"

"I need you to go find the others while I check something. I have a suspicion and it would be more beneficial if you can do some scouting for me while I attend to matter here. Can you do this for me, Sothis?"

Sothis blinked at the polite way her host asked her for help. She didn't take long to reply in the form of an amused smile and gentle shake of her head. "**I've told you time and again, you need only ask for my help and I will give it**." Saying that, the Goddess allowed her body to float high into the air before flying through the woods.

Reassured that the Goddess would make sure his team was OK, the blonde closed his eyes and focused his chakra, specifically over the seal on his stomach that allowed him to detect nearby chakra signatures. Unconsciously, the seal will spot any chakra used within a certain radius. However, if he forced chakra into the seal…

The moment chakra went through the seal, an invisible burst of chakra shot out from the Uzumaki and covered everything within a 100-meter radius. His eyes immediately shot open and the surprise he felt could only be seen due to his widened eyes. All around him were numerous shinobi that cloaked themselves expertly; some as close as 10 feet while others as far as 90. He had no idea who those shinobi were and could not identify them without unfreezing them from time, but he was sure they could all attack at once and there'd be no doubt who'd come out on top.

Calming down, the Uzumaki could at least come to two conclusions: the first being that they were most likely here to observe. If they wanted to capture or kill him, then there were plenty of opportunities in the fight with the shinobi he'd incapacitated.

The second: this was a test of some sort. However, he was skeptical on whether or not this was a part of their Genin exam. It would make sense for their sensei to want to test their skills considering its her job to evaluate them and its completely up to her how hard the test should be, but even he had to admit this was too advanced for Genin, no matter how talented the team. On top of that, those shinobi were aiming at fatal points of the body. The blows probably wouldn't kill him instantly, but mortal wounds were mortal wounds and any normal human would die in a matter of minutes from the spots they aimed for. There was always the possibility that they were really foreign ninja who knew about his 'status' and took advantage of an opportunity, but he found it very illogical that they'd somehow get information that was highly classified and couldn't be spoken by even the lowest shinobi of Konoha.

So, if this wasn't an attempt by foreign shinobi and this wasn't a test, then what _was_ this? What was he missing? What was the point of all this?

Going through multiple questions and scenarios in his head, he was unaware that he'd been standing there for about 10 minutes and would have been much longer if Sothis hadn't suddenly reappeared right before him with crossed arms and a contemplating frown on her pale face. "**Your friends are fine. A little roughed up, but fine. However, as I'd suspected, the Kagero woman is nowhere to be found.**" The Goddess paused, as if contemplating on whether or not to share more information. In the end, she did so, "**After going through your discoveries, I have also found something…strange**." That got the blonde to perk up. "**Unlike you, there is no surveillance around your teammates. The Hyuuga was engaging three of the attackers while your friend engaged two. However, there was no other energy signatures I could find within a 200-yard diameter of their positions.**"

That got the blonde pondering once more. So, they only sent a small portion of their shinobi to deal with his teammates while the bulk of it 'observed' him? To top it off, they were all clearly Jonin. He was confident in Tenten's skills and would say she could take on most, if not all, Genin that came her way. _Maybe_ Chuunin if the situation was right. But Jonin? No, she was not ready for that even in the most strenuous of situations. Yet, from what Sothis told him, she was fine. How? It would make more sense why they wouldn't try their damndest to kill Neji considering he was a Hyuuga and still young, but the same could not be said for Tenten.

And himself? He was a Jinchuuriki and an Uzumaki. They may not be able to confirm whether or not he was really an Uzumaki, but even the chance that he was one would be valuable to any village. And if they 'just so happened' to find out he was a Jinchuuriki, then it'd make sense for them to try to kill him, but why do that when he was more valuable alive? No village in their right mind would kill a Jinchuuriki unless it was war, or they were trying to start one. That thought was an impossibility considering Kumo should be on thin ice on every village in the nations after the 'Hyuuga incident' and Naruto knew the current Hokage was not stupid enough to make enemies when-

Something finally clicked as the Hokage crossed his mind. The incident back in the office immediately surfaced and he now knew the true meaning behind the pleasantries and questions. Everything was now piecing together. The Hyuuga that was no doubt checking his seal, A Clan head suddenly becoming their sensei, the multiple shinobi currently observing only him, the aggression on his life specifically.

This was not a test for the 'team'. This was a test for him specifically. Why? He could only come to one conclusion on that, and he truly hoped he was wrong. Otherwise, there was no chance in hell he'd ever mend relations with the man he'd once thought of as a grandfather.

"**I see you've come to the same conclusion**." Said the Goddess, only getting a head nod in return. "**I sincerely hope that old man has not done the unforgivable, but that can be approached at a later date or time.** **Currently, I'd like to know what you plan to do next, child?**"

Naruto had no real answer to that. He was definitely not happy about the situation he found himself in and finding out that the man he tried trusting again was potentially treating him like a traitor, but there was little he could currently do about it. There were a few other things he could do next with his powers, but those actions would definitely garner suspicion from the wrong parties and he was now 100% positive he couldn't trust the Hokage anymore... or any shinobi in Konoha for that matter. The best answer he could come up with is to let events play out and use a Divine Pulse when the time demanded it. This way, he could gather more information and use that for future events.

"**I see holes in your answer, but I will let you have the experience this time. I'm sure you'd prefer to solve problems on your own than have me hold your hand all your life, no?**"

The blonde nodded in appreciation before unfreezing time. He was immediately warped back to his original position in front of the first body. Standing there for about a full minute, he waited to see if any of the shinobi around him would take the opportunity to attack. When none did, he gave a sign of mental disdain before turning on his heels and headed to his nearest teammate. Now that his fears were confirmed, he knew they would be alright, so there was no rush getting there.

After only a minute of tree hopping, he came to a stop on a branch as he saw one of his team members about 100 yards away, looking around frantically with his Dojutsu active, but his eyes closed. The Hyuuga looked a lot more roughed up than when the Uzumaki last saw him, but did not seem to have any life threatening injuries aside from the long cut that split open his jacket and the blood that seemed to be seeping through the bandages on his right arm. Other than that, he seemed to have the situation under control if the three bodies that laid motionless around him was anything to go by.

Not seeing any 'visible' threats, Naruto quickly closed the distance between the two of them and made sure to announce his presence since he wasn't necessarily sure if those Byakugan could see him through their user's lids. The moment he was in the clearly the Hyuuga seemed to slowly blink his eyes open until he could clearly see the blonde in front of him.

Not a moment later, Tenten landed right next to the blonde looking more tousled than the rest of them. She was breathing heavily and had multiple cuts that ran along her arms, legs and cheeks. One of her buns were let free and allowed her hair to hang lazily to the side of her face. Out of the three of them, she most definitely had the roughest time against her 'attackers'.

"Is that, all of, them?" The only girl of the group asked between breaths, sounding almost desperate.

Just when the Hyuuga was about to give the all clear after scoping the area, he suddenly cursed and got back into his fighting stance. Where there was once a clear forest, now stood with over 50 new figures that had somehow escaped his Byakugan eyes. All were grown men/women and all wore the same attire as the ones currently at his feet. "Far from it."

Naruto and Tenten saw the Hyuuga get back into a defensive stance and instinctively put their backs to their mutual acquaintance and away from their unseen enemies. Naruto held his sword at the ready while Tenten had two scrolls in both hands, ready to unveil its contents at any who attacked first. The bun-haired almost gasp when the multiple figures in the trees started materializing before their very eyes. She couldn't even count how many she was currently seeing. Just taking on the two that attacked her nearly took all the cards she had. There were no delusions of victory going through her mind if they all attacked at once, help from Naruto/Neji or no.

"Impressive." A deep voice praised from the silence, causing the Genin's heads to turn to it's direction in front of the Uzumaki. Out of the forestry materialized a tall, dark skinned figure that wore an attire that could not be mistaken for anything other than a Kumo Jonin. He had white, unkempt hair that went down to his shoulders and not a hint of emotion could be seen on his unscarred face. "Since your sensei was so easy, I'd thought her Genin would be the same. Seems I was wrong."

That sentence confirmed the suspicion Naruto had about his sensei's whereabouts, but it was Tenten who spoke up before he could get any information out of the grunt. "Sensei? Don't tell me-"

The lack of completion of the sentence caused the man before them to raise a hand in the air. Immediately, two figures fell from one of the trees and casually dropped a mangled body before the Genin. Tenten couldn't hold in her gasp as she saw the mangled body of the woman that had just been fine not even 6 hours ago. Her hair covered her face, but the torn attire and similar figure they'd seen before was a dead giveaway. The only good they could see was that she was still alive if the soft movement of her chest was anything to go by.

"We only want the Hyuuga. Give him up, and you two and your sensei can live." The deep voice of their leader spoke and got the attention of the Genin once again. The Hyuuga of the group had turned his head behind him and openly glared over his shoulder at the Kumo-nin, while Tenten looked as if she was having an inner debate. Naruto, however, frowned at the 'Kumo-nin'.

"We are surrounded, at a disadvantage in every way possible, and it'd be counterproductive for you to let us leave alive when we could just immediately go report to the Hokage. Why would we give in to such demands when there's literally zero chance of survival?"

The man didn't answer immediately and the blonde couldn't tell what he was thinking due to the lack of emotion that was not too far from his own. "…Let's just chop up my generosity to me being _uncomfortable_ killing children."

"Bullshit." It was the first time Naruto had ever heard Neji curse (or any Hyuuga for that matter), but it summed up the thoughts of both his team members. No shinobi worth their salt would ever risk the mission, that could only result in a war if captured, just because of _morals_. This situation was just that and the man was either a terrible liar, or just gave Naruto all the proof he needed for his 'answer'.

Faster than any were expecting, Naruto tossed a regular kunai right at the leader's head. Effortlessly, the ninja caught it with two fingers just before it would have pierced his right eye. "I take it that this is your answer?"

Without missing a beat, the Uzumaki tightened his stance and stared resolutely at the taller shinobi. "The true measure of a shinobi is not how he lives, but how he dies." The words once spoken to him by the first man he thought he could trust began leaving his lips as if he was reciting it for the hundredth time. "It's not what they do in life, but what they did before death that proves their worth. If I am going to die a shinobi, then at least I know I will die loyal to the village I swore my allegiance to and not a traitor who surrendered one of his own to save his skin. Prepare yourself, because we will not die laying down."

The words that left his mouth seemed to stun the other two Genin. Tenten would be proud to admit that she knew Naruto more than mostly anyone her age could claim to know and would say she had his thought process down to a T. However, the words and confidence he currently spoke with was something that completely took her off guard. It made the worries she was having about making a decision that could ultimately end with her life clearer than it had been only a second ago.

Neji looked over his shoulder at the Uzumaki in newly found respect. He didn't necessarily like the Uzumaki due to his own personal problems, but he couldn't deny what the Uzumaki just did was more than admirable. It made the Hyuuga straighten his own stance in preparation for the fight before him that would most likely be to the death. If he was going to die today, then at least he knew the world wasn't as black and white as his eyes would claim it to be.

Meanwhile, Sothis was smiling on her throne as she watched the boy she had a hand in raising. To be able to show such compassion and dedication despite the hardships he'd been put through was something she admired about him. Yes, he admitted that she was a big part of how he viewed the world and acted, but it has always been his choice to stay on the path of the righteous instead of the dark that she had seen so many humans follow before in history. He truly was an interesting human being and she looked forward to the man he would no doubt grow to be.

Invigorated from the short speech by the Uzumaki, the three Genin stood ready to face their demise with open eyes and determination. Nothing would deter them any longer and if it was their fates to die here, so be it (even if one had no plans on letting any of them die).

"I've heard enough." A soft, stern, yet very familiar voice spoke up and grabbed the attention of the three Genin. Tenten and Neji began showing surprise in their own fashion as their former mangled sensei began to stand up-broken limbs beginning to snap back together as if they'd never been moved. Soon, the woman was standing straight and as confident as the day they'd first met her. "Dismissed."

That one word had the ninja surrounding them giving a quick salute the Genin had never seen before they quite literally disappeared into thin air (including the bodies that were once 'unconscious/dead' around the Hyuuga). The action caused the three Genin to finally relax their stances. Neji felt relief finally being able to deactivate his Dojutsu while Naruto's sword disappeared in a puff of smoke and Tenten put away her scrolls. The three Genin were now lined up, looking expectantly at the woman they had thought incapacitated not five minutes ago.

"Please tell me there are no more 'test'." Tenten did not need to glance at her team to know they shared her sentiment. Much to her joy and relief, the older kunoichi shook her head.

"No, there is no need for another test. You have more than earned your rank as Genin."

The moment those words left the older kunoichi's mouth, Tenten slumped to the ground in total exhaustion. She'd love to jump and celebrate about _finally_ becoming a Genin, but had no energy left to do so.

Neji, however, had other plans. "Before you say anymore, I have a few questions that I'd like answered." The Shimura nodded in confirmation almost immediately. "I understand that there are, apparently, high expectations of this team, but why was our test so…difficult? I'm sure that even you can admit that this 'test' was far more advanced than any Genin had a right to be."

The question made the older kunoichi go silent for a moment. From her lack of body movement and emotion, they couldn't tell what she was thinking. However, the very uncharacteristic snort that escaped the woman who was firmer than even the noblest of Hyuuga made all three Genin blink rapidly. They'd say she was amused, but there wasn't even a hint of a smile on the now closed eyed woman's face.

"Your 'test' was far from anything I'd call 'hard'." The Shimura stated in a tone that could be mistaken as arrogant if it wasn't coming from her lips in particular. "I will admit, this test is far harder than your generation is used to, but this is my test and I preserve the right to make it as hard as I want. Most other teachers sugarcoat their tests as if they can hide their students from the real world. I refuse to do that." Her eyes were suddenly open once again and they burned with a fire the Genin weren't exactly expecting. "It is your lives that I am responsible for after all, and if you cannot pass my test, then believe me when I say, there is no chance of you making it in this world."

There was a pregnant silence that none dared to break (albeit, for completely different reasons on all parties). It was only broken when the oldest of the group began speaking once more—now looking to the something in the distance than none of them seem to be able to see aside from her.

"…A similar test was given to a promising batch of Genin 5 years ago." She said almost reverently, her eyes clouding over as what could only be an unpleasant memory plagued her thoughts. "Two failed the test and were forever banned from being shinobi. It was not due to their inability of passing part of the test, but due to the threat of them possibly giving away shinobi secrets to save their own lives. How incompetent fools like that ever graduated the academy will forever remain a mystery." She now glared at the three Genin who hadn't spoken a word sense she started. "You all knew exactly what you were signing up for the day you passed your first year of the academy. If you are willing to rat out your comrades in order to save your own skin, then you are not only unfit to be a shinobi, but are the lowest trash amongst the human race."

There was so much spite in the words that it could almost be felt as a physical blow. The three Genin, of course, understood the meaning behind the words she spoke. They were taught from day one that treachery is the lowest you could go as a shinobi and were told on day one that every shinobi in the village should be treated as equals regardless of their heritage or background. For they are the ones who defend their walls and risk their lives every day to make sure Konohagakure stays the great village it is. They had no idea what happened to their sensei for her to feel so strongly about the topic, but they were sure it was a story that wouldn't come out clean.

The woman's gaze did not leave her Genin as she showed her conviction through every word she spoke next.

"Starting today, you are _my_ Genin. I will teach you everything I have learned as a shinobi and you will listen to every word to the T, or you will not learn. I will have you more than ready to face anything in this world before you are even Chuunin." The sensei began walking to the still Genin as she continued her speech. "I will break you, build you up, then break you again. I will destroy any innocence you have and replace it with cognizance and confidence. I will make so that you hate me. Hate me more than even your worst enemies. But at the end of my training, when you are finally taking missions and are future Jonin yourselves, you will thank me, and you will hold your heads high because you have succeeded over your peers. You will be feared by your enemies and praised by your allies. But most importantly, you _will_ be remembered."

Stopping for only a moment, the woman suddenly had her tanto in hand and held its sharp edges to the palm of her right hand. With a smooth motion and not showing even an inch of discomfort or hesitation, the blade sliced clean through skin and allowed her life liquid to escape her body. Standing before her Genin, she held he hand out in a fist as her blood dripped through her fingers and to the grass below. This was definitely more than any other Jonin would have done on their Genin test, but the Genin before her didn't know that and she aimed to make a mark on their lives much like Danzo-sama had done on hers.

"Swear to me. Swear to me that you will take your training seriously. That you will not settle for anything but being the best. That you will never betray this village for as long as you live. Do this one thing for me and I swear, on my name as the head of the Shimura Clan, I will turn you into excellent shinobi."

None of the Genin moved. Not from a lack of enthusiasm, mind you. Rather, it was one of those moments that you were deeply moved by the situation or words, but didn't know exactly what to do next. In fact, in the face of someone they barely knew giving them a blood oath and basically giving everything other than her soul to make them stronger, what exactly _were_ they supposed to say?

"**Despite our 'situation', I cannot help but to admire her charisma.**" Thankfully, like always, Sothis was there to break the blonde out of his stupor. Due to his recent revelations about the Hokage and the things this woman no doubt planned to accomplish in the name of her leader, there wasn't a hint of a lie he could detect in her tone. "**She is not lying child. She truly meant every word she said.**" And the fact he had a living lie detector was also reassuring. "**She may still be hiding other things, but she's sincere in this matter**."

Naruto still had questions. Questions that this woman most likely wouldn't give him. Questions that could very well put his future loyalties into question. However, it was not her attitude that made the blonde be the first to act. It was the promise of getting stronger that made him hold his right arm forward while maintaining eye contact with his future sensei. "My goal is to be the strongest. If you can help me to that goal, then I see no reason to distrust you."

It took some time, but not soon after he had sworn his best, Tenten join in followed by the Hyuuga who looked all too prideful to partake in this 'overly dramatic show'. And it was when all of their hands were outstretched that they saw the approval in spread across that Jonin's face in the form of a small smile.

They were not sure how far they would make it in this world, but they were damn well going to give it their all.

* * *

**A Few Months Ago**

"**_Come at me, child_**."

_Naruto stood motionless as he stared unblinkingly at the Goddess casually holding an identical sword to his own. When she said that they had much more to do before done, he expected something a little less…physical. In fact, the word 'physical' never even crossed his mind. It was just not a word that he'd think to even be in the same sentence with the lazy Goddess. She just didn't seem…the…type…?_

"**_What?_**_" She asked him, frowning at the thoughts running through his head. "**Did you honestly believe I'd create a weapon I had no idea how to wield myself? And here I was, thinking you'd thought better of me, Child. It would seem I'll have to stomp that image of myself out of your head before we continue any further**."_

"_Not, exactly." Naruto admitted, though he sounded very hesitant despite not showing it outwardly. "I just, wouldn't have expected someone like… _of_ your stature to bother learning something so… violent. You just don't seem the type to… get your hands… dirty… no offense."_

_Sothis seemed more amused by the blonde's hesitance than anything else. "**None taken**." Said before a thought popped into her head and she looked down at her form. "**Though, this was not the form I used when engaging with my children**."_

_Not a moment later, Sothis began aging before his very eyes. Her height slowly grew from 4"10 to 6"2 and her face lost the little baby fat it had. Her chest had now grown significantly along with her hips and rear. Even her clothes and accessories adjusted to her changed visage. The 'woman' now standing before him held the appearance of a Goddess in not only aura, but body as well._

"**_Much better_**_." The Goddess smiled in contentment. "**This form is far more rewarding in a battle... Though**," her contentment soon fell as she frowned down at the new lumps of flesh currently blocking the view of her feet. Then, without much thought on what she was about to do, she began poking the lumps of flesh with her only free hand. "**Having bigger breast are as annoying as I remembered. Honestly, how do women get anything done with these things weighing them down?**"_

_Maybe it was the fact that Naruto hadn't yet hit puberty, or maybe it was the fact that he'd shown no interest in the female body for the 12 years he'd been alive. Either way, he went completely unfazed by the act of immodesty before him. However, something in his gut was basically yelling that there was something he was supposed to say and/or think here. Like it was an instinct that was implanted into him._

_Safe to say, not even he fully understood what left his mouth until he thought about it months later when puberty finally hit. "I personally believe them to be more than adequate to my eyes."_

_That made the Goddess immediately stop her ministrations and stare at the child before her. There seemed to be a deadlock between the only two being in this realm before the Goddess suddenly shrunk back to her original body in the blink of an eye; thoroughly confusing the blonde in the process . "**…This form will do just fine**."_

_The blonde only tilted his head, but said no more. A few months later, as he began to 'notice' the female form more, it was with much reluctance and patience that Sothis had to sit the boy down and give him 'The Talk'. She had lived for more millennium than she'd like and have created many children through ritual and had spent many years as 'somewhat' a parent considering most were raised by her worshipers and their siblings. And yet, telling a boy why he is suddenly having 'thoughts' and why he had been thinking, about her in particular (older her or not), was 'normal' was definitely the most uncomfortable she had ever been in her entire existence._

_Well, at least most of his mind was filled with learning her style of swordplay instead of thinking about…_other_ things. She eventually concluded that it was a better idea _not_ to be looking into the mind of a boy currently going through puberty; dreams included. She now only roamed his mind when the situation asked for it, concluding that some things were better left in the human mind… and out of her head entirely._

* * *

**Omake 1**

**The Golden Rules**

Before the Genin were dismissed, they had to turn in all the money they 'found' to the Hokage Building; at least, the wallets were, while the rest was donated to the village. The only one who didn't have to return anything was the blonde since, technically, what he stole was his own money; or what would have been his money in a couple of days. The moment their sensei heard that, she stared him down until he (reluctantly) explained himself. "You confirmed that we were not allowed to take advantage of anything we already own; family included. Though I would have received that stipend within a few days, the money at this point in time is not yet mine and currently belongs to the village. Therefore, I have broken no rules aside from the law. I believe we call that 'working smarter, not harder'."

After he was done, the blonde stared back at their new sensei without a hint of shame or remorse; completely missing the bun-haired girl's look of absolute bewilderment at the insanity of what her friend had accomplished when they were at the Hokage Tower, and the Hyuuga, who didn't show it outwardly, somewhat impressed look by the Uzumaki's boldness.

Eventually, the Shimura broke eye contact and continued her way to their destination.

Anyways, now they stood outside the Hokage's office. Just when they thought she was about to give them their final orders, she suddenly pulled out their wallets that were, from all places, stuffed between her sizable bust. Tenten had never been more happy to see her purse than she was that day. The moment the wallets were in her Genin's hands, Kagero concluded their session with their first orders as Genin. "Tomorrow will begin your training. I expect you all to be here no later than 6 A.M. If even _one_ of you are late, I promise you will not sleep for the next 48 hours. That is all. You are dismi-"

"Why is my wallet lighter?" Tenten suddenly cut her sensei off as she frantically tried shaking out the money she knew was in her wallet before their test had started. Naruto and Neji seemed to be doing the same thing, but one did not seem bothered, while the other had a look that mixed with anger and betrayal. Then all at once, they looked to the Shimura who looked back without even a hint of worry or shame.

"…While you three were running about, I easily retrieved 4,000-Ryō." The three students blinked. "You were so focused on your mission that you completely disregarded the threat that was already before you. Someone that only one of you pointed out, but did not act."

As if a piece of a puzzle had been put into place, all three Genin began showing their own mix of realization as eyes widened, jaws hung agape, and empty pockets for a few days became more prevalent in their minds. Meanwhile, the kunoichi simply raised a hand that held up three fingers.

"There are three rules I live by as a infiltration specialist. Three rules that I will also pass down to you as my new students. Number 1: If you are with a group and one is compromised, _never_ risk your cover for the sake of the accused and _never_ rat out your subordinates. Number 2: _Never_ carry more than you can safely conceal. And Number 3, the most important rule for both me, and society in general," for the first time they'd known their sensei, a small, almost smug, smirk began to creep onto her face. "Never leave your money with a thief."

Not saying another word, she vanished in a swirl of leaves—leaving a flabbergasted brunette, a scowling Hyuuga, an oddly impressed Uzumaki and a highly amused Goddess (if the chuckles in the blonde's head was anything to go by). Their new sensei _definitely_ had a sense of humor.

* * *

**Omake 2**

**Byleth: Part 2**

**Far Different from the Rest**

_The next time Byleth awoke, she wished she hadn't. She could feel a cramp in her neck and her bed was a lot harder than she remembered. On reflex, she sat up and a hand immediately went to her sore neck. It didn't take her very long to realize that her other arm went with her. In fact, it would be very hard to not to when they were literally kept together by what looked to be a metal pillory. Looking around her she finally noticed that she was definitely not in her room. That was made abundantly clear the moment she saw the metal bars that imprisoned her in the box-like room._

_Despite her situation, panic was not the first thing to cross her mind. Instead, she carefully stood to her feet and walked to the bars preventing her from escaping while trying to ignore the metal ball shackled to her left leg. From what she could see, there didn't seem to be any sign of guards or other prisoners. The stone ground was all that could be seen stretching from the hallways and the gloom could almost be felt in the air. The only thing she could hear was the birds that chirped from the small crack that let the little sunlight into her 'cage'._

_Calmly, she walked back to the wooden bench that was her bed and sat down. All she currently knew was that she was currently a prisoner (obviously). For who was still in the air, but she somehow doubted it was the bandits considering they were nothing compared to the many bandits she'd taken on in the past, so at least she was reassured there. But if she wasn't a prisoner for the cut throats, then who was she a prisoner for? And more importantly, what happened after… she 'died' last night?_

_Thankfully, it only took about 2 hours for her to be in the dark about her situation before she heard a door open in the distance and footsteps heading her way. Much to her relief, it was her father along with a guard that looked to be a Knight of Seiros. Her relief didn't last long when she saw the state her father was in. He wore a cast over his right arm and seemed to have a slight limp to his step. Bandages wrapped around his head and she could tell from his slight slouch that there was something wrong internally. She immediately wanted to know what happened. Who was the man or woman that did this to her only parent and how could she find them? That thought was put on hold as her father calmly stepped into her cage with a look that could only be relief._

_The guard left the cage open and left shortly after her father entered. Immediately before she could say anything, she found herself completely taken off guard as the moment she stood to her feet, her father had closed the distance between them and had practically buried her in an embrace. She didn't understand the sudden show of affections, but she slowly melted into the embrace as her father awkwardly rubbed the back of her head. It last only a minute before they broke apart and she could see the relieved smile on his face once again. Despite how much she enjoyed the unusual show of affection from the man who didn't show much, she knew something serious had happened and was the first thing that left her mouth after the embrace._

_She watched as the smile on his face quickly morphed from hesitance to acceptance as he motioned her to sit back on the bench with him. They sat there for another minute of silence before her father revealed 'the news'._

_It was not the fact she'd killed every fleeing bandit yesterday that broke her. It was not the blood that covered her, nor the fact that she killed those that no longer had the will to fight. It was not the fact she'd attracted demonic beast to the area and tore them all apart using only her bare hands. No, it was the kids she had been trying to save and what exactly she'd done to them when they tried to 'bring her back to her senses' that broke her._

_The blonde kid had lost an eye, the brunette nearly became paralyzed from the waist down due to a blow she delivered to his spine, and the white-haired girl…Gods, the white-haired girl, the one she'd nearly died for, was currently in a coma. The news only got worse from there. It had been 2 days since the event and she had been 'temporarily' incarcerated by the Knights of Seiros until further notice on charges of 'assaulting nobility' and 'putting the lives of students in danger'. Her father was able to speak with Rhea, the head of the Church of Seiros, and she agreed that the truth of that day would not be revealed to the public, but that was only until Rhea herself deemed that Byleth wasn't responsible for her actions._

_Even the reassuring words from her father couldn't get her mind away from what she had done for the second time in her life. She thought she could make up for that day. She thought she could just forget that day and what she had done by dedicating her life to helping the one's around her. She thought she could forget about what had taken over her. But fate proved that she could not run away from her past._

_After telling her father that she wished to be alone for a while, he sounded hesitant, but obliged and swore he'd get her out of this cage before leaving the dungeon. Meanwhile, she was left with dark thoughts. Thoughts that had never crossed her mind before this day. Despite them looking for an answer for years. Despite them trying to figure out what was wrong with her and doing everything in their power to prevent this day from happening again, they couldn't stop the inevitable._

_Byleth knew she was special. She knew she was different from everyone else. She knew there was something about her (or in her) that made her special. That made her better both physically and mentally than everyone else._

_But sometimes, being 'different from the rest' was more of a curse than a blessing._

* * *

_A/N: This chapter I basically dedicated to characterization of Kagero and Team 6. I tried to do a little more with Neji and Tenten, but it didn't really make it pass beta (which is me lol). Ended up scrapping A LOT of things, but it all planned out perfectly in the end. Next chapter will go through some time skips along with more information._

_Not much else to say other than thank you all or the reviews! Thank you as always for the support and remember that reviews motivate me!_


	4. Chapter 4

**Interlude**

**Eye of the Hawk**

The Shimura Clan, one of the very first clans to join the village of Konohagakure no Sato in it's founding days, was not known for it's size. The number of members could be counted on two people's hands and was one of the harder clans in the village to actually find. The clan compound was located on the far-right wall of the village with the wealthier population that mostly included merchants, businessmen, and bankers.

See, despite being a clan, the only power it held was political. Only four of the 18 members were shinobi while the others were either shinobi accountants or recorders and interrogators. The only clan currently lower in strength than the Shimura was the Yakumo Clan, and that was only due to their decrease in shinobi to only 8 after the Kyuubi attack and their heiress currently undergoing training to control her Kekkai Genkai.

Now, you'd think the Shimura Clan would be inferior to other clans; strength wise, at least. On the surface, you'd be right. With only 18 members, 4 of which were shinobi in their 30's and the rest of the clan well above the age of 50, there was no competition. Surely, a clan close to it's extinction didn't stand a chance against the other clans?

And that, is where you'd be wrong. In the eyes of the other clans, the Shimura was but a lesser clan that had no pillar of support left to keep them up. However, to the Hokage and the elders of the village, the Shimura had the power to rival even the Hyuuga Clan due to the two individuals that currently resided in the Dojo of the Shimura compound.

Danzo, the current head of the Shimura Clan and the one who had raised his own army in the dark while doing any and everything in the shadows to make sure Konoha stayed the strongest in the Elemental Nations, stood over the woman he had put an investment into over 15 years ago; by far, the best investment he'd made in his 72 years of living.

She was the only one he could not break. The only one that still held a moral high ground despite everything he'd done to turn her into a weapon. Despite holding no Kekkai Genkai, she could stand against the best on the field and come out on top no matter the shinobi's experience or advantage. It was these skills and her drive to continue improving that made him declare her as the next commander of ROOT and the heiress of the Shimura Clan despite not holding a drop of Shimura blood in her body. Of course, there were disputes on why a none clan member was announced the next head, but their demands and arguments held no weight. Nothing about their blood was special and all clan members ripe for child making age were already married and would not risk their marriages for even a sperm donation. So, in the end, she was officially made clan head and there was nothing anyone other than Danzo could do about it.

Now, Kagero Shimura, age 23, adopted daughter of Shimura Danzo and the heiress of the clan, kneeled before him as she prepared to deliver her report from her 'mission' with her Genin and the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki.

"Report." The gravelly voice of the clan head spoke through the silence, making the woman before him lower her head slightly in respect for his position.

There was a reason she in particular was selected for this mission. Though she held no Kekkai Genkai, her sensory abilities made her a cut above the rest.; ROOT and ANBU included. Her sensory abilities were advanced to the point where she didn't even need to flair her chakra to locate any nearby threat, nor did she need require for a jutsu to be used in order to find her target. If any chakra was used in the area, she could follow it's trail up to three days as if it was a physical trail. Her tracking was so far above the rest that it could even rival Clans such as the Inuzuka and Abarame.

It was these skills on top of her growing fame as of late that Hiruzen could not so easily dismiss his plans. No matter how senile his old teammate was getting, he couldn't deny that they were at an impasse regarding the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and the only way they could get the information they wanted was by going above morality.

And that was where Kagero came in. Her job was not only to monitor the Jinchuuriki, but to report on event the slightest of changes in the Jinchuuriki's chakra. If there was no change, then good. They had nothing to worry about and they could continue worry free. But if not, then the correct action would be taken to ensure the safety of Konoha.

"Hai, I have both good and troubling news, Danzo-sama." Danzo showed nothing that would give away his emotions, but his silence prompted the younger Shimura to speak. "I've passed the Genin and found them to be more than adequate as shinobi of the leaf." Kagero knew that that particular information would be good news for any superior, but she knew her father did not care for her thoughts on the Genin, but on her main mission. "In regard to the 'mission', I'm honestly not entirely sure of what I've found."

"…Explain."

"Hai. I observed Uzumaki the whole week as ordered, and got a clear feel of his chakra. As you stated, there were no abnormalities with his chakra and I've noted it was not as potent as our former Jinchuuriki. That was only confirmed during the test. I specifically had two of our better agents try to force the Uzumaki into using his chakra or releasing a portion of the Kyuubi's chakra by going for lethal blows the Kyuubi should be able to heal."

"…The problem?"

Kagero lowered her head further in shame at the slight change in tone of her father/leader. "He, was far more skilled in Fuuinjutsu than the agents were expecting. Before they could accomplish anything, they were incapacitated. I would have sent in more agents to continue the mission, but it would have caused future conflict and suspicion if I purposefully pressed forward… However," more confidence entered her voice as she got to the bulk of her discovery. "For only split second, a different power source escaped the Uzumaki's body as he was observing one of our captured agents."

That discovery definitely got the War Hawks attention. "And?"

"After this sudden source of energy was expelled from the Jinchuuriki, his chakra seemed to be more aware and I have suspicion that it somehow gave him the ability to sense myself and the agents in waiting. I could not confirm this, but I am 90% sure whatever he did made him realize that the attack was a test...for _him_ specifically."

The War Hawk thought on that for a moment. Normally, the right thing for Danzo to do would be to immediately withdraw her from the mission since she was potentially compromised. However, there was no proof the Jinchuuirki could use against him. The only thing he probably knew at the moment was that the test was more than it seemed and he most likely has already placed the blame on Hiruzen. That was most definitely better than the alternative. Plus, it gave him a better chance to manipulate him in the future if his plans strayed off the board.

Nevertheless, there was something else he was far more interested in than the Jinchuuriki's suspicions. "This…secondary energy. How sure are you that it is not the Kyuubi's?"

Kagero seemed to wrestle with her thoughts for but a moment before she spoke with firm confidence, "Sir, I've met many shinobi in my career and have felt thousands of different chakra signatures. I am confident when I say the only way to have two different energies running through your body is if you are a Sage or a Jinchuuriki." The kunoichi raised her head until she was looking into the eye of the man that had raised her since she was but a naïve little girl. "I remember Kushina-sama's chakra as well as the Kyuubi's as if it were my own. I can say with absolute certainty that, whatever energy he used at that moment, was _not_ the Kyuubi's chakra."

Danzo didn't bother checking for deceit in his adopted daughter's eyes. She had never lied to him to this day and her voice had more than confirmed her words, which meant it was time to look at the situation at hand. Now that the truth about the Jinchuuriki had been confirmed, the only thing left to do was figure out how to get into the blonde's head to see exactly what he was hiding behind that seal, or have the blonde willingly spit out the truth himself. A Yamanaka was out of the question for obvious reasons and Danzo knew the blonde wasn't one for revealing secrets considering the big secret he knew about the blonde that he still kept to himself to this day. Seeing that the blonde obviously had control over this 'foreign energy', the use of force was off the table. The only other option would be the more subtle approach instead on the more _violent_ solutions.

But that was not up to him at the moment. It was up to the next clan head to make the decision. Though it was his operation, it was her mission and he knew firsthand how much she hated other people interfering with her mission; helpful or no. Pride gets shinobi nowhere, but it was her pride that has gotten her this far in her career and what made him name her the next head of the clan. "How long will it take for you to extract the information from the Uzumaki?"

As expected, her answer was immediate. "Not long, sir. I plan to have them ready for the next Chuunin Exams, so I shall be putting them through harsh training. I do not know exactly what the energy does, but the moment I feel it, I will confront him. If he does not cooperate, then I will use force."

Hiruzen would definitely not sign off on that plan. The old fool may have allowed him to do things his way and had the stretched-truth of the plan, but it was clear that no harm would come to the Jinchuuriki or "I'll have both of your heads on a cross" as he so elegantly put it. Damn him and damn his pacifistic ways.

"The latter is something I cannot unfortunately allow." The kunoichi's brow furrowed slightly at the denial of her plan, but the older Shimura let it go. "Continue only the beginning of that plan, and while you're at it, gain his trust in any way possible. Use the skills you've gained over the years to full effect, for this mission will be the most important you will ever take as a member of ROOT." Danzo's tone became harsher as he made sure to get his point across and show the seriousness of the situation. "Failure is _not_ an option. Do I make myself clear?"

The answer came immediately in the form of a lowered head and a "Hai, Danzo-sama" before she disappeared in a blur of leaves. Now alone, Danzo turned on his heels and headed to the entrance that would lead him to his personal army underground—all the while thinking of a certain blonde headed Jinchuuriki that had gotten his attention years ago. The boy who was not controlled by his emotions. The boy that had shown more than adequate qualities for being a shinobi. The boy whose true genius could only be seen through the shadows. The boy that ruthlessly snuffed out a traitor and improved the quality of future shinobi whether he meant to or not. Kagero may have been the perfect shinobi to run ROOT and protect Konoha from the shadows, but Naruto was everything he wanted in a shinobi in the light.

Danzo had no illusions that he was getting old. It was a fact that he could no longer deny and the position of Hokage wasn't getting any closer to him. Soon, the time would come for Hiruzen to pick a new successor and Tsunade, Jiraiya and Kakashi seemed to be the only candidates for the position. Yet, none of those candidates were truly suitable for the job in the War Hawks eyes. The first was a kunoichi who had basically turned her back on her village, the next was a lecher who was more interested in women than owning up to his responsibilities, and the last's drive as a shinobi was nonexistent.

He had already found a more than suitable successor for the Clan and the army he has built over the years. But 5 years ago, he found a more than suitable future Hokage in his place. Now, it was his job to make sure the Jinchuuriki stayed on his current path, even if he had to cut some loose ends to make it so.

* * *

**A/N: Actually proud of myself for this interlude. I'm a slow typer and usually depend on voice talk to get my sentences out faster, but I typed this entire thing out in less than 2 hours, so yay me! **

**By the way, there is something I completely forgot to mention at the beginning of this story. There is a specific character that is going to be female instead of male in this story. My reasons will remain my own, but can you guess who it is? Is this a big YESYES or a big NONO? Let me know your guesses and thoughts on that (Before any of you guess, I'm going to stop you and say it is NOT Sasuke! In fact, he is not, and will not, be a main part of this story!). **

**This was originally going to go along with the next chapter, but I decided against it sense it didn't really fit with the feel of the next chapter. Just want to show how different Danzo will be in this story and his motivations for the future that will also have consequences. **

**Also, know that in future Interlude chapters, there will be NO OMAKES, so no update on Byleth, sadly ****. I know you all have a lot of questions about what will happen to Byleth and all the juicy stuff, but I don't want to spoil that just yet. However, I WILL give a slight spoiler down below, so if you don't want to see it then CLOSE YOUR BROWSER NOW, PLEASE! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! **

**SPOILER (WHAT ARE YOU STILL DOING HERE? GET OUT OF HERE FOOL!): **

**Someone asked me what route would Byleth be taking and who exactly she will be paired with. Someone also asked me if Byleth will eventually make it to the Elemental Nations. The answers to those questions is:**

**Byleth will take on the Black Eagles route, but it will not exactly follow cannon. There will be major changes that will ultimately lead to a big climax that will not go pass the 5-year time skip. Now, technically, there **_**will**_** be a 5-year time skip, but it will not be exactly what you are expecting and you will see why at the middle of this story (which I honestly don't plan to have over 350,000 words). **

**For the second question: Edelgard all the way. No changes. Thought about Shamir or even Rhea, but Rhea obviously would never get it on with Byleth (for reasons that are too spoily) and Shamir is kinda boring to write and isn't really a major part of Three Houses (though Shamir is my second favor romance option in the game). Therefore, Edeglard wins by a large default. **

**The final question: Yes and no. I say that because, in a way, she will, but at the same time she won't. However, that isn't until WAAAAAAAAAAAY in the story, so don't get your hopes up just yet. **

**SPOILER END**

**Anyways, thank you all for the last reviews! Really enjoyed all the reviews and this time I tried answering all reviews the moment I saw them! If I didn't answer your review yet, then I'm very sorry and I will try to get to it when I can. **

**Anyways, don't forget to review as it is a great motivator, and follow so others can know if this story is good or not! Thanks and see you all next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: Before you start, I want to thank everyone for the reviews they sent me regarding the story and want to send out my prayers and well wishes to everyone who is currently being affected by this virus. I hope you are all doing well and continue to fight on despite the panic and loses we are facing at this moment.**_

* * *

**Chapter 4**

* * *

**Day 3 **

**Moment #1: Hate**

If the Genin of Team 6 could say one good thing about their new sensei, it would be that she was a woman of her word. As a matter of fact, not one thing she said that day was a lie. Everything from promises of power, to promises of fame and glory was more than believable through her words alone.

But there was one truth that Naruto, Tenten and even Neji could agree was the most prevalent statement that day: They all, without a doubt in their tired minds, _hated_ this woman.

"Get up."

On the outside, Naruto wasn't a spiteful person. Yes, he had gone very far in the past on people who had intentionally went out of their way to hurt him (Mizuki being a case that probably went too far), but he had convinced himself that all of it was more of a necessity for survival than a desire to hurt anyone.

But _this_ woman. The woman that currently stood over them without a mark on her person despite them giving it their all to at least _touch_ her. This woman that looked down on them with crossed arms as if their performance was sub par at most. This _woman,_ who, for the past 2 hours, has been kicking them around like rocks on the street…

"I told you on day one that I'd show no mercy in your training, and you all _swore_ to give 100%. Get. _Up_."

Yes, Naruto could freely admit that _this_ woman, this evil, vile, wretched _woman_, deserved _all_ his hate. All. Of. It. Even if he didn't show it outwardly, he. Ha. Ted. This. WOMAN.

"***Yawn*** **I feel tired just looking at you**."

And the Goddess's snide remarks every other hour was NOT making him feel any better.

"**I adore you too, Child**."

* * *

**Day 7**

**Moment #5: Moving In**

"Starting tomorrow, you all will be living with me. Have all your belongings ready at Ichiraku's at no less than 1200 hours."

The sudden declaration came completely from left field. There was no warning, no build up, nothing. Their sensei just suddenly threw this announcement on them as they made their way to Training Ground 3—as if she had already gotten their approval and everything. Safe to say, not one of them were particularly amused by this discovery. Tenten, being the more vocal of the group, decided to be the voice that spoke for them.

"Wha-I-but-yo-you can't do that!" was her intelligent reply, putting her metaphorical foot down at this injustice being served. "My house is the only place I can get away from your, your _torture_! You trying to take that away from me too, huh? Huh?! B-Besides, my father would never agree to this!" Yes! YES! Dad would never sell her out like this! Not even the Hyuuga Clan was stupid enough to let one of their own live under the same roof as someone not a part of their clan, _RIGHT_?

"Quite the contrary. I have already received the approval of both your father and the Hyuuga Clan yesterday."

THOSE_ TRAITORS_!

"It took time, but they both eventually agreed to my selfish request. Starting tomorrow, you are all not only my responsibility on the field, but at home as well."

Tenten tried her best to search for an argument against the injustice being served, but all that stumbled out was, "T-t-this isn't fair!" in which, Kagero just stared at her as if she had said one of the dumbest thing to ever grace her ears.

"I do not see the problem." Kagero tried reasoning since her point clearly wasn't getting across. "You get free rent, free food, free bathing, free washing, free equipment and free training whenever you please. Furthermore, you have access to a training ground and training dummies at your leisure and the only thing I will ask of you is to not destroy my property. Why would you be so against an offer when there are nothing but benefits?"

This was bad. _Very_ bad. She could not argue against that logic and the benefits were definitely more than she was expecting, but if she allowed herself to be taken by such promises and luxury, then her life as not only a girl, but a teenager would be forever lost! There had to be something! SOMETHING she could say to get out of this very, _very_ bad situation!

"B-but-uh-w-what about privacy?! Yea! _Privacy_! Teenagers need A LOT of privacy, y'know! There's a TON of things we do that we want NO ONE to know about and-and-and you don't honestly expect me to live under the same roof as someone who can see through walls, right? RIGHT?!" Tenten was pulling at strings at this point—sounding more desperate the more words escaped her mouth. However, that last comment got a glare from the 'wall peeper' in question and a completely flat stare from her sensei.

"…Please tell me you are not hinting what I think you are hinting."

If Tenten's mind wasn't running a mile a minute, she would have caught the accusation in the older kunoichi's tone. Instead, she smiled and nodded happily—seeing this as an opportunity to get her admittedly selfish point across. "Y-yeah, it's _exactly_ what you think! You know us girls—always got our secrets, right?! Ahahahahaha… Haha… ha." Her laughter slowly died out as she stared at the woman's face that hadn't changed since her latest words.

Eventually though, the older woman closed her eyes and crossed her arms underneath her sizable chest. "…I understand that, as a teen, you have extra…needs…" the bun-haired girl's smile became more genuine as she felt that her desperate rambling might have just paid off.

"…And, as a girl, there are much more…_secrets_ and _needs_ that must be taken care of…"

Yes Yes YES!

"…And you need far more…_space_ and _privacy_ in order to…tend to these 'needs'…"

EXACTLY!

"…and time…"

PREACH IT!

"…however, though I understand how hormones work and the effects it can have on your mind and body, I ask that you keep masturbation in my home to the bare minimum."

...Eh?

Tenten rewound the last part of that sentence. Safe to say, when she found out what her sensei thought she was insinuating, her face burned red as she could now feel all three gazes firmly on her.

"W-wait, that not what I-"

"Nevertheless, I can assure you that every room is equipped with sound suppression seals that also negate even the eyes of the Hyuuga. I will also knock on your doors before I ever enter, and you are more than welcomed to lock your doors whenever you wish. But understand that I find such 'needs' to be beneath you as a kunoichi and will make sure to teach you to overcome them in future kunoichi lessons as well."

The younger kunoichi couldn't even defend herself. That was most definitely NOT what she was worried about, but the sheer shamelessness behind the insinuation that should, by all means, be kept between both genders _behind_ doors, at all times, made the kunoichi's embarrassment reach it's peek.

The very next morning, all their things were moved into the Shimura's two-story house. Whether it be a sick joke or her sensei genuinely being 'considerate', Tenten was placed on the other side of the house closer to the Shimura's bedroom. Thankfully, they all got their own rooms upstairs and the bathhouse was located just outside the building. The dojo was a lot better than any of them expected and the training grounds were connected to a forested area the size of Training Ground 3.

All in all, the only difference in their daily lives was that they all now ate together, slept under the same roof, and their sensei did not need to travel across the village to whip their asses.

* * *

**Day 15 **

**Moment #17: Battle Buddy**

After knowing their sensei for a good 2 weeks, they have learned quite a few things about her character that were crucial to their new daily survival.

One—always wake up on weekdays at 6 A.M. and 9 A.M. on weekends for morning training. Any who does not wake up on time will not eat that morning and training will be twice as harsh for everyone due to the tardiness of one. Quite unfair, but they've long since learned that that particular word doesn't exist in their sensei's dictionary.

Two—any and all 'grudges' are settled in the dojo. Any fighting done outside of training or the dojo is punished by spending a day in 'The Box', which was basically a big square room where you spend 24 hours fearing for your life as multiple hooded figures attacks you both physically and emotionally until the next day. They have sense learned 'alternate' ways in settling their differences—the most popular among the few being an advanced game of 'Ichi' **(A/N: UNO)**, in which the winning gets one good hit on the loser/losers; anywhere on the body, but not hard enough to leave evidence that could be seen by their sensei. Other rewards included, but not limited to, dessert, next pay on equipment, the last to attack their sensei the next day, etc. Hell, even their sensei joined in at some point to kill time.

Three—she had absolutely ZERO sense of decency. When not 'torturing' them (because they refuse to call their 'training' anything but), she's either not in the house, locked up in her room, or she struts, unashamed, around the house in various revealing clothing that was definitely not safe for work, the recent being nothing but a long T-shirt that barely fell below her rear. This wasn't really that baffling, nor was it particularly crucial to their survival. Just a minor annoyance that made Tenten feel very inadequate in comparison, brought a scowl to the Hyuuga's face, and _always_ got the full attention of the blonde.

Four—probably the most important of them all, she stretches the truth, like, a LOT. In her defense, she _does_ actually tell the truth in the beginning. As a matter of fact, absolutely nothing she tells them is a complete lie and she's truly genuine about everything she says. But alas, behind that stoic mask is the smiling visage of a sadistic, embellished dictator who lies to her people and will do anything in her power to make sure what she first envisioned will become a reality in any means necessary.

A good example of this would be the rooming situation. When she first told them that they would have their own rooms, they believed that to be fairly reasonable. But that seemed to be the only 'fair' thing they got aside from the right to breathe. They quickly learned that the new house they lived in wasn't the safe utopia their landlord depicted it as.

The day they moved in they were introduced to a new training exercise that they were sure was only there for shits and giggles. Apparently, in the ANBU training system, there is a training exercise called 'Battle Buddies'. It is a mental/technical exercise where your superiors 'test' you on both your awareness, positioning and skills. The way it works is every cadet is given a partner (or partners) and are told not to stray 10 feet from them for _any_ reason other than a direct order at all times of the day. Going from what their sensei had told them, anyone caught without their 'battle buddies' meant that they were 'strong enough on their own and didn't need a second pair of eyes watching their blind-spots'. This also meant that their superiors had full authority to 'discipline' them first, then 'discipline' the other 'buddy/buddies' for 'abandoning a comrade'. So basically, this '_exercise'_ was just a vailed excuse every superior had to justifiably beat the absolute shit out of anyone without any repercussion.

Tenten learned this the hard way on day one. Right when she had retired for the night, her sensei suddenly dashed from her closet and 'captured' her (after kicking her ass, of course). The next day, she awoke chained upside-down next to her teammates who somehow looked worse than she did. Before them, their sensei stood with a look of stoic disappointment written on her face (at least, that's what the demon wanted to portray. The Genin were not fooled in the slightest at all by the mask she tried to hide that smile behind).

"You all were caught off guard and away from your Battle Buddies. You have been captured by your enemies and will go through various torture sessions before having your throats slit. In other words, you are KIA. I hope this will be a lesson for all of you to take every word I say seriously from now on." Despite the tone their sensei used, her eyes spoke a thousand silent words. The sadist was enjoying every minute of their suffering and they could do nothing about it.

After days and days of harassment and assaults, they eventually just decided to move into one room. If someone needed to do something outside the room, all of them would go with, no complaints. If someone needed something outside the house, everyone went, no excuses. This was just the way things needed to be to keep themselves 'alive'. Though this lessened the attacks, it also removed any privacy they'd previously had. Tenten had to get used to changing in the same room as two boys currently going through puberty and they had to now take shifts at night to make sure their psychopathic teacher didn't 'kill' them in their sleep.

Not everything was negative in their new arrangement, however. Though they feared for their safety most times of the day, the three learned much more about each other while bunking in the same room than they would have bunking separately.

For instance, while unpacking into the new room, which they decided to be Neji's room due to it having more space than the other two, the Hyuuga and Higurashi two thing about the blonde:

One—his wardrobe completely fits his personality. He literally only had a stack of Fuinjutsu papers in plastic bags, exactly 20 bottles of ink, a few scrolls, and a futon. Though Neji's side was just as depressing as the blonde's, at least Neji had an eye for decor seeing that his wall had multiple motivational messages with traditional Konoha elements around his bed and dresser. Naruto didn't even have that. Instead, he only had a box with a few shirts, pants and underwear in them with a picture frame that had him and the two Ichiraku's posing with him staring blankly in the middle. All in all, it was pretty sad to watch, both for the Higurashi and Hyuuga.

Two—the rumor about the Uzumaki randomly talking to himself was 100% _true_. It was never full on sentences, nor did it happen every day, but every now and then, rather it be in their room or at the dining table, the Uzumaki would say something out of nowhere and then had the nerve to act as if he was not obligated to answer their quarry.

On Tenten's side, the boys learned that she had an…_unhealthy_ obsession for weapons. Literally her entire side of the room was filled with multiple metal objects that either hung from a wall or was neatly placed within a jar or scroll. In addition, she took the days she had off cleaning absolutely every weapon she had that was not stored in a scroll. How she found that 'fun' was beyond the boys, but seeing that they weren't the pinnacle of sociability either, they kept their thoughts to themselves.

Neji, was a piece of work. He never really revealed much about himself, nor did he speak to them much. If he was not training with them, then he was meditating or doing whatever Hyuuga do when brooding. He did seem to have one secret however, that being the bandages that he constantly wore around his forehead whenever he slept or showered.

During one particular night where both Neji and Tenten were on the lookout for 'The One That Slithers in the Dark' while Naruto slept, Tenten decided to try her luck and see if she could east the Hyuuga into telling her. As she expected, the conversation was completely one-sided and she was just waiting for him to tell her to shut up, but he didn't and she was able to ease the topic into more personal topics until she finally asked about the bandages.

The reaction she got was completely unexpected. He glared at her from her spot across the room and looked as if he was about to yell, but seemed to think better of it and visibly calmed down. In the end, he answered with 'it's none of your business' and the conversation ended there. That topic was never brought up again.

They were far from being closer as both friends and a team, but at least they weren't at each other's throats despite and they worked relatively good as a team during the day.

Now, if only they could survive the night…

* * *

**Day 23**

**Moment# 20: "**_**Missions"**_

Neji had one thing to say about D-Rank missions: they were a complete and utter waste of time and 'training'.

Pure.

And.

Simple.

The 'missions' Team 6 partook in every Saturday were nothing more than glorified chores that they were paid to do. Kagero had explained to them that this was how 'social teamwork' exercises were expanded for Genin on the field, but it was hard to believe that when the sensei preaching it sounded as if she was reading it from a piece of paper. In fact, if it wasn't against the law for a sensei to not let their Genin partake in at least 5 D-Rank missions within a week, then Neji was sure they would be back at the compound actually learning something that would benefit them on the field than doing menial tasks such as walking dogs, painting fences and milking cows.

If things couldn't grate on his nerves any further, they were, once again, on the Tora mission—a 'mission' that literally revolved around them hunting down and capturing a cat; the Damiyo's wife's cat, but semantics. How that demon of a cat was still alive and able to move with the skills of a shinobi after living for 35 years was a mystery no one on Team 6 cared to investigate considering they could care less if it 'accidentally' fell into a blender tomorrow.

The only saving grace about this particular D-Rank mission was the end of it where he, and his fellow Genin, watched in grim amusement as the cat they'd been 'hunting' squealed in fear and agony at the pressure the plump woman put into her 'hug'.

"UWWWAAAAHH I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE HOME SAFE AND SOUND TORA DARLING~! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH YOU'VE WORRIED MAMA THIS TIME! I SWEAR THIS TIME I WON'T LET YOU OUT OF MY SIGHT EVEN FOR A MOMENT. YOU'LL BE TREATED LIKE THE DAMIYO YOU ARE!"

For but a moment, Neji entertained the thought of joining his fellow female Genin in her quiet, yet maniacal chuckling.

"WE'LL GO FOR WALKS, STUFF YOU WITH NOTHING BUT THE BEST FOOD WE HAVE TO OFFER, AND EVEN TAKE BATHS TOGETHER LIKE WHEN YOU WERE BUT A TEENY LITTLE KITTEN! WE SHALL RELIVE THE MOMENTS THAT MADE YOU MY LITTLE POOCHIE POOCH MY LITTLE POOCHIE~!"

...A very, _very_ long moment.

* * *

**Day 32 **

**Moment #23: Water Walking 'Training' **

Team 6 stood on top of the pond they'd been training on for the past 2 days. On paper, Water walking was the exact same thing as the tree climbing exercise, but in execution, they were nearly worlds apart. Since you were walking on water instead of a solid, the balancing of the chakra had to be lowered so you could basically float on the water instead of walk on it. In the tree exercise, if you put too much chakra into it, then you would blast off (something many students found out firsthand in the academy), but if you put too little chakra, you'd simply slide off as if you were running on ice.

It was a pain to learn, and even bigger pain for Neji and Naruto to watch Tenten finish within the first hour, but they could finally do it perfectly after 2 days of hard work and now awaited their sensei's new orders.

Now, for the past two days as they were learning the technique, their sensei sat on the sideline and said absolutely nothing to them. No help, no pointers, just sat quietly and watched as the boys of the group failed over and over. It was kinda uncharacteristic of her seeing that most of everything she taught was hands on, but none of them complained seeing that they were finally not getting their faces kicked in. However, it would seem their sensei would be giving the hands-on experience she loved so much; which was absolutely fine.

But as the young teenagers looked forward to the woman wearing one of the skimpiest pieces of clothing they'd ever seen in their lives, they couldn't help but to ask…why?

The clothing in question was a bikini that barely covered the more 'important' parts of the female body. It was a similar red to her usual garb and was strapless. The fabric was connected by a ring in the center of her chest that seemed to be doing everything in it's power to keep her bust from spilling out. The bottoms were a sliding triangle that had the strings connected at her hips. How exactly she was going to do anything physical in that type of bikini? Only Kami knew.

"Seduction is an artform born for kunoichi. While men use their bodies for power and endurance, women fine-tones theirs not only to keep up with their counterpart but use it against them as well. If used correctly, they can get males to run their mouths in hopes of promises or get him to his or her most vulnerable and slit their throats when they least expect it." The woman stopped her explanation to reach behind her and pull out what looked like a silver bell tied to a red ribbon. "Since you've all finally learned water walking, today I will test your mentality as well as your skills in both Taijutsu and Chakra control. The goal will simply be to take this bell away from me while staying afloat. The punishment this time for the first to sink will be kitchen duty for the rest of the week. Any questions?"

There were many, but the males of the group were too focused trying to figure out where to look at the woman before them-leaving Tenten to ask questions in their stead.

Neji has worn the same look of open-mouthed bewilderment since the woman appeared before them. Contrary to popular belief among his peers, Neji was not ignorant to the female body. He noticed the female body just as much as every hot-blooded teen his age did. The only difference between him and them is that he was more in control of his hormones due in no thanks to his intense focus on his future goals and training. If fate would have him with a wife in the future, then he would accept that and explore the pleasures of the flesh when that time came.

But this woman. This _shameless_ woman who hadn't shown an ounce of modesty with her COMPLETELY indecent choice of ware since the day he'd met her was slowly driving him to the edge!

Naruto was not too far from the Hyuuga's thought process. However, instead of being embarrassed by the view in front of him, he was carefully taking everything he was seeing. He most definitely didn't dislike the view before him, but for some reason, it just could not compare to the image he'd seen all those months ago. Her breasts were definitely bigger than Sothis's and, aside from the scar just below her right breast and above her left thigh, she still was more than appealing to the eye, but he just couldn't put this woman on the same level as the beauty he'd saw that day.

Matter a fact, Sothis would look 10 times better in that than-

"**REMOVE THAT IMAGE FROM YOUR HEAD THIS INSTANT YOUNG MAN!"**

…Yeah, _definitely_ bette-

It was absolutely no surprise to the blonde that he suddenly sunk before the test even started. He had to clean the kitchen for the rest of the week, but he couldn't bring himself to be mad or disappointed over it. The images he gained that day was more rewarding than this punishment could ever be. Sothis tearing his ear off every now and then was just an acceptable price to pay.

* * *

**Day 48**

**Moment #29: Pick Your Enemies**

Probably the most 'normal' part of any time spent with their sensei, aside from eating, was the activity they currently found themselves partaking in. Holding multiple bags in each hand, Team 6 walked down the streets of Konoha towards their shared house as they finished their grocery shopping trip with their sensei—a weekly activity all had to partake in if they didn't want to hunt for their food outside Konoha. Thankfully, unlike living on their own, they did not need to pay for any groceries. All their needs and wants were paid in full by their 'ever so gracious' sensei until she deemed them ready to start taking missions; when that would be was still up in the air.

It was also a time where they could freely talk to the woman without her trying to invoke their paranoia. No random attacks to 'test their reflexes' or 'make sure they remained vigilant at all times'; all just excuses for child abuse if the Genin were being honest. Nevertheless, the Genin were just content to not be ran through the ringer for once in their lives.

Except, there was one _tiny_ problem they tended to stay on alert for whenever they stepped outside the Shimura compound. That problem just so happened to, once again, turn a corner and stop at the same time Team 6 did. A wide grin spread across the face of the purple haired woman in front of them before, without hesitation, the three Genin literally dropped everything and haul-assed in the opposite direction of the sadistic kunoichi now chasing them.

Kagero watched her Genin tactically retreat as if the Devil were on their heels. Absentmindedly, she acknowledged that they were much faster than the first time Anko 'hunted' her Genin before she turned to the woman that accompanied the T&I expert. Kurenai was looking to the distance where her friend and the Genin disappeared before the Shimura's eyes landed on her.

"I'm sorry about this, Kagero-dono… Again." The Yuhi apologized, getting a shake of the head from the younger kunoichi.

"There is no need to apologize, Kurenai-san. As I said before, this is a lesson they simply must learn in the future." 'Pick your enemies' was the unspoken phrase. The Genin might have pulled a fast one on the Tokubetsu Jonin, but apparently didn't think too hard on the consequences if the woman found their identity. A little digging here and there and investigating the 'found' wallets at the Hokage tower gave her more than enough proof on the Genin who had robbed her blind. Now, they were her hunting targets and Kagero would not save them from the hole they dug themselves.

A silence permeated the air as neither knew what to say next. Thankfully, it looked as though Kurenai didn't need to think of anything since there was a problem presented before her in the form of bags that were left behind by the fleeing Genin. "…Would you like some help with your groceries?"

"…That would be appreciated."

* * *

**Day 60 **

**Moment #35: Art is a Matter of Perspective**

"It's a hand."

"…I fail to see it."

"Are you blind? Look, it has five appendages and even has fingernails on all tips. Though the thumb is kinda off, it can be nothing else but."

"…I still don't see it. No matter what angle I look, I can only see a cow's udder."

"… Of all things, how the heck did you look at this and think it was a cow's udder?"

"Look closely. Though the tips are square, the shape of it is similar to a cow's udder. Aside from the extra appendage and the color, there is nothing else I could think it to be."

"…Y'know, for someone who claims to see it all, you sure can't ever see when you're wrong."

"Hmph, your insults have long since lost their bite, Higurashi."

"I think you both are wrong. This is clearly a table with, what I can only assume is, a penis growing from the edge."

"Wha-that's even worse than Neji's guess! Where the hell did that imagery come from?!"

"…Don't know. It's just the first thing that came to mind when I first laid eyes on it."

"…It's a horse."

The three huddling Genin looked away from the piece of paper in the Higurashi's hand and behind them to their sensei that loomed over them. If they weren't too busy worrying why she had suddenly appeared in their room, then they would have noticed that her voice lacked its usual authority and her eyes were a lot less dim than normal. As a matter of fact, compared to the many times they've been before her in the past, her current presence seemed to be…lacking…for a lack of a better word.

"It's… a horse."

Tenten and her fellow Genin blinked rapidly before looking back to the picture with squinted eyes. The girl of the group eyes widened as a clear picture was now in her mind. "Wow! I would have never even guessed!"

"Indeed." Neji massaged his chin thin thought as he continued to look at the 'art' in the bun-haired girl's hands. "I would have never come to that conclusion on my own."

"I know, right? Oh! I see it now! And the green under it has to be grass!"

"Hmmm, and I can assume the brown lines are hay?"

"And that yellow ball is the sun?"

"You're right! It's all piecing together now! Man, drawings like this makes me remember how bad of an artist I was as a kid. Glad to know I wasn't the only one out there who sucked."

"…"

"Indeed. However, not even I was this bad when I was five."

"I concur. However, as a member of the Hyuuga clan, our calligraphy is beat into us. If we could not draw as good as we wrote, it was considered 'improper'. Therefore, I do not believe I can share the nostalgia of child art with you."

"Hehe, and I learned how to by my dad. Y'know, him being a weapon's smith and all. If I showed him a drawing this bad, he'd probably burn it and-"

The three Genin felt a sudden shiver go up their spines as a feeling of dread permeated the air. They all turned and were all shocked and terrified at what they were seeing. Purple chakra so thick with malevolence that it could be seen by the human eye currently outlined the Shimura like flames on a bonfire. What simultaneously shocked, yet scared them the most about the woman was the tears streaming down her cheeks as her only visible eye looked down on them as if they were the biggest pieces of trash to ever be in her vicinity.

They wanted to run. Run as far away from this monster that threatened their very existence. However, not one of them could move nor speak from the pressure their 'soon to be' murderer was putting on them. Their legs were locked in place and they felt even the slightest move would have their heads rolling like a tumbleweed in the Suna Desert. The worst part about it all was that they were going to die without even knowing what they did to piss off the monster before them.

Then it all disappeared. Vanished as if it were never there in the first place. The three Genin all let out audible gasps of air as they all fell to either a knee or their rear the moment the pressure was no longer on their bodies.

Seeing the state her Genin were in, the Shimura mentally kicked herself and bowed at the waist. "I ask that you please forgive my loss of control. It was unacceptable for a shinobi of my experience to so easily give in to my emotions like that. I will be sure to punish myself and increase my training so a repeat of this does not occur in the future."

Standing straight once more, the Kagero kneeled down to the bun-haired girl who flinched as if she was going to be hit. The blow did not come, however. Instead, with a swift move of her hand, the art was removed out of the Higurashi's hand. Without a second thought, the woman balled up the piece of paper.

"Training is done for today. I-" she took a glance at the balled-up paper in her hand almost regretfully, "…wish to practice on…_things_. You are free to do as you wish until tomorrow morning. Understood?"

The Genin didn't even get a chance to affirm since the woman disappeared the moment her sentence was finished. The three Genin were left conflicted but did as they were ordered. The very next day they were trained into the ground. They would later find out that the drawing that they were critiquing belonged to none other than the woman currently running them through the mud every day after the incident. They'd feel regret for hurting their sensei's pride if it wasn't for the fact that she'd been taking pleasure in torturing them for the past 8 weeks.

On the downside, since they never apologized for their transgressions against her 'art style', she gave them a week of hell. But on the bright side, that day they learned that their sensei wasn't as hollow as she portrayed herself to be.

They also learned that her 'art' needed work…

… A LOT of work…

* * *

**Day 72**

**Moment #45: The Hunt **

…

…

…

…

…

…_45 degrees Northeast, 50 meters away. About 40 feet from the ground_. _Immobile_. _Charka, light blue, amount: average. Seems to be the one planting chakra tags around the forest. Definitely the bun-haired girl. _

…

…

…

…

…_No massive chakra signatures nearby. Blonde still unaccounted for. _

…

…

…

…_! _

_Chakra signature coming in fast at 180 South! _

The kunoichi quickly did a 180 at her discovery and stood at the appropriate stance to combat the enemy approaching. As she predicted, a figure dashed from the bushes and right at her. More than prepared, the kunoichi deflected the quick palm strike to her midsection and did the same for the one's aimed for her jugular, right breast, shoulder, and thigh.

On the seventh strike, she finally found an opening in the form of an overextended jab to her temple and quickly grabbed the appendage with her hands. She made to counterattack, but her senses quickly warned her sharp hear caught the whistling of something coming in fast behind her. Moving just slightly to her right, the kunai that would have no doubt disabled one of her legs soar by—and right into the free hand of the Hyuuga before her.

Quickly releasing his arm unless she wanted to lose her own, she backpedaled and had to draw a kunai of her own to deflect the projectile the Hyuuga had just thrown in retaliation to her retreat. Once again, he was on the offensive and she did everything in her power to keep up with the speed of the Genin before her.

After receiving one too many close calls with the Hyuuga intentionally giving her openings just to have a random weapon thrown at her from the kunoichi in the trees, she decided to change tactics and quickly used another opening to retreat into the forest and towards the younger kunoichi constantly stopping her advances. Much to her frustration, she could feel the bun-haired girl quickly retreating at a similar speed the closer she got.

Just when she could feel she was making progress, something at her legs suddenly glowed bright and she had but a split second to jump away from the exploding tag that would have taken off her legs. Landing a few meters away from the explosion, she was caught off guard once again when another flash beneath her warned her of the danger she was in. She was able to jump, but not far enough from the blast radius and it showed from the heat she could feel on her skin and her body flailing in the air like a rag doll.

She was able to get her footing back before she hit the ground, but quickly about-faced her previous target and continued to her mission objective. The Genin sent after her were far more than she expected and she had no intentions of being captured by brats. Much to her growing frustration, the Hyuuga was out pacing her and she knew it was a matter of time before he was back on her.

In a desperate attempt to gain some space, she reached into the pouch at her hip and pulled out four paper bombs tied to kunai. With the swiftness of her Jonin status, she put some chakra into the tags before hurling one with pinpoint accuracy at the chakra signature quickly closing in on her. She did not stop in her haste as the explosion rocked the forest. Instead, she remained focus and continued to monitor the Hyuuga. As she expected, it didn't stop him for long and he was quickly gaining on her once again. Putting just enough chakra to delay the next to kunai, she casually dropped them on the branch below her and waited for her plan to bare fruit. As she expected, the Hyuuga didn't hesitate to go around the trap she had planted. However, it didn't matter in the end. A smile came to her face as bang sounded out where the Hyuuga suddenly stopped. Flash tags sure were useful when you needed them.

Not wasting a moment, she put all her strength into her legs as she could feel she was getting closer to the way point. The Hyuuga was moving again, but she was sure she could get there before he could catch up to her. Just when she could see her goal in the distance, she was forced to stop as a purple barrier suddenly blocked her path. She made to go around it, but found herself suddenly blocked on all sides by the same barrier.

Before she could question what was going on, something landed at her feet and immediately got her attention. All she could see was a tag with writing she'd never seen before her eyes few open in shock as thousands of volts of electricity shocked her stiff. She screamed her lungs dry in complete agony as every part of her body felt as if she was being stabbed with needles.

It lasted for only a few seconds, but the damage was done. Once she could see clearly again, she could only notice that the barrier was down before the Hyuuga suddenly appeared in front of her and struck her hard in her abdomen, immediately disrupting her chakra system. Bile escaped her mouth at the crippling move, but she didn't get a chance to even think since the earth below her shifted and she suddenly found herself being wrapped up by what looked like a dark rope with chips of bone connected. The moment the rope touched her skin, she could feel her already damaged chakra stream become none existent and she was forcefully pulled into the ground to her neck.

It was as three figures stood over her that she realized there was no getting out of her situation.

She was captured; by Genin, no less.

A fourth figure landed behind the Genin and immediately gained their attention. Kagero looked down at one of her fellow ROOT agent and nodded in approval. She'd watched the whole exchange and though there were a few oversights here and there, there was nothing she'd comment negatively. Their teamwork was leagues better than it was nearly 3 months ago and their skills today proved it.

A proud, genuine smile came to her face as she looked down to the Genin that were nothing more than academy students a few months ago.

They were almost ready for the field.

* * *

**Day 74**

**Moment #44: Don't Bathe with Sharks**

Kagero stretched every crook in her neck as she walked towards the bathhouse. It has been two and a half months since her Genin moved in with her and she could honestly say the benefits were very gratifying. Though her Genin weren't particularly happy about it at first, she'd like to think they eventually came around if the lack of complaining was anything to go by.

Entering the bathhouse, she immediately headed to the baskets that would hold her sweaty clothing. With just a single pull of a string, her stomach protector fell to the ground, releasing the fabric underneath and fully opening her garb. Following up with her gloves, scarf, ribbon, and finally leggings, she placed them all neatly in the basket before walking in the nude towards the sliding door stopping the steam from exiting the room.

Opening the door, she was immediately hit with the comforting heat against her body that began relaxing her stress. Wasting no time, she headed to the nearest shower-head and began filling the bucket nearby with water before splashing it over her entire body. This went on 2 to 3 more times before she grabbed a nearby towel and soap and cleaned her body thoroughly. Once clean, she stood to her full height and entered the 20-foot-long bath and the back of the room that was basically begging her to jump in. The second the warm, steaming hot water touched her skin, the kunoichi let out a sigh of contentment and just relaxed as she slid all the way down till the water was barely covering her modesty. It was times like these that she truly appreciated the use for money.

When she was but an orphan, she never got the chance to enjoy such a luxury as bathing in steaming hot water all to herself. Even while in ROOT, the only thing she was able to enjoy was the training she received from her father and the lukewarm water she shared with the many occupants of the organization. Now having her own home, her own walls, her own bath, and now her own Genin made her really appreciate the life she'd been given.

…

Speaking of Genin.

Peeking a single eye open, she locked eyes with the only other two occupants in the bath. The Hyuuga and Uzumaki, who had not said a word since she entered, sat on the furthest end of the bath with widened, hyper-focused eyes that were firmly on the female that had invaded their bathing session. Their focus never wavered even when the woman had finally acknowledged their presence. If a bystander were to look at the situation, they would easily mistake the youths' focused eyes as lecherous considering they haven't moved them from her person since the moment she stepped into the bathhouse, but the Shimura could see the real intentions behind their stares and their chakra told no lies. They were anxious, slightly embarrassed, and…scared…

"…Is there a problem?" She decided to break the ice first seeing that they were far too caught up in their fear to be the first to speak. Much to her annoyance, the boys didn't even blink. They just continued to stare her down as if she was a predator ready to pounce.

The stare down went on for about a minute and every second that passed seemed to slowly deteriorate the only adult in the bath's mood. She was not at all ashamed of her body, nor did she particularly care if anyone were to see her in the nude, but the way they were looking at her as if she was going to attack them any minute was really disconcerting.

As if she had an epiphany, the frown that had been growing on her face slowly slid off. The reason _why_ they were so nervous was so obvious (in her mind at least). They were still teenagers and most likely never grew the same comfort she'd grown to have when bathing with companions over the years. She was a little disgusted that they'd think so little of her, but decided it'd be best to alleviate their fears. "…I can assure you, I have _zero_ sexual interest in children."

Though her words were reassuring, the boys were anything but. If she didn't know any better, she'd say they seemed to be even further on edge after her statement. She was happy that they edged on the side of caution even now, but surely they didn't think she'd attack them at their most vulnerable, right?

"…You have been randomly assaulting us in the house, at the dinner table, in public, and even in our sleep for the past 2 months and have told us on multiple occasions to 'never drop your guard, even at your most vulnerable because enemies are lurking in every corner'. We are simply following what you what drilled into us."

"And I'd prefer _not_ to clean the floorboards once again with a toothbrush as punishment for being 'off guard'."

…Maybe she had made them a little _too_ paranoid… Oh well, nothing to do about it now

…but since they were basically giving her this opportunity…

"I see…"

"…"

"…"

"Are you two enjoying the water?"

"…We were." the Hyuuga answered for the two.

"I see."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…And Higurashi?"

"Sleeping." was the quick reply from the blonde.

"…I see."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…So, am I correct in assuming that she does not currently have a Battle Buddy?"

Nothing but the sound of dripping water was heard in the silence. It lasted for but a moment before the three bodies in the water disappeared in a blur of speed. That night, Tenten was awoken to the view of two stark naked boys heavily panting over her. The scream she let out could be heard across the village and a smiling Kagero could be found still relaxing in the bathtub she never left from. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she'd had this much fun and she still had a few more entertaining months with the kids.

Becoming a sensei was _definitely_ one of the better things to happen in her life.

* * *

_**A Few Months Ago**_

_When it came to training, Naruto had more time on his hands than anyone ever would in the world. Since he had the power to stop time for as long as his body was able (which was now about 72 hours per day) and could reverse time up to 7 times a day, there should be no reason why he wasn't taking advantage of it. _

_However, that advantage was very _limiting_. For one, no matter how much he trained his body while time didn't flow, it would always revert back to point one due to the not-so-consequential drawback of stopping time, which was return his, and everything around him that he touched, back to how it was when he started. He had thought of many different solutions to this unfortunate phenomenon, but all fell flat and not even Sothis could help him despite it being _her_ power. He knew she was keeping something from him in regard to that 'secret' about her power, but never pressed her since he was grateful enough that she'd showed him alternate ways of using his time stopping abilities. _

_You see, though his physical muscles never retained their workout after time was restarted, his mental muscle always stayed. This meant that anything he learned while time froze would always remain with him even after it started again. Since he'd learned that, there has not been a day in his life that he has not taken advantage of it. Some days, he'd use this skill to test work on and test seals that he'd been working on, while other times he'd use it to explore certain parts of the village. These places included, and was not limited to, the Jonin section of the library, other shinobi homes, Clan compounds, ANBU HQ, and even the home of the Hokage himself. _

_But there was one place in particular that interested the blonde more than any other building in the village. That building just so happen to be the building he currently found himself in. The building that held the 'Forbidden Scroll' along with various other secrets that had no doubt been kept away from the public. In this building, unknown to anyone else in the world, he had learned more about the village than he'd ever learned in the 6 years he'd been an academy student. Everything from what type of missions was available, to every shinobi's name, rank and status, everything was filed in this building, and Naruto had the pleasure of going through all of it without anyone else being the wiser. _

_If you were to look at the blonde from an outside perspective, then you would think the blonde was looking for something particular, or even just curious about whatever he laid his hands on in that building. He obviously had a motive behind waltzing into one of the most secured places in the village, right? _

_Oh, how wrong you are. He did not do this because he was particularly interested in anything in the building, nor did he have any ulterior motives when he did so. In fact, there wasn't one thing in the building that was even remotely useful to him. For one, he couldn't perform elemental Ninjutsu (something he still to this day does not know the reason behind), so most scrolls he found were useless to him. He has no interest in blackmail, nor is he particularly interested in getting revenge other shinobi considering not many of them have really ever crossed him (though, thanks to Sothis and her library, everything he read in the files were permanently in his memory and could be used for future use). _

_No, his reasons were very petty, actually. _

_After 'the talk' Sothis had to give him a few weeks ago, Naruto had been subjugated to various 'punishments' every time his new uncontrollable hormones put a picture of a woman in his head. The 'punishment' couldn't really be considered a punishment if you looked at what it was doing for him in the long run, but being brutally beaten, cut, and on several occasions, cut in half, really put the blonde in a state where even thinking of breast brought back unpleasant flashbacks._

_Now, Naruto wasn't a very vengeful person, nor was he particularly petty. If that were the case, he'd had somehow offed half the village due to the pain and suffering they tried dishing out on him throughout his life. If he were to be honest, if not for Sothis, he was sure he'd be a missing nin the moment he felt strong enough to fend for himself. Alas, as explained, he wasn't a vengeful person. That did not mean, however, that he was against the idea of getting a few jabs in—even if he was going to lose in the end. _

_As he walked into the office, completely ignoring the alarm seals that would alert no one while time was stopped, he went straight for the desk that sat in front of the windows. Once at his destination, he opened the dresser and low and behold, the item he was looking for stared back at him in the moonlit room. Gently picking it up, he made sure it was the real thing before a smile came to his face as he read the title: Icha Icha Paradise. _

_He had heard many things about this series during his many visits to the library, but never really had an interest in it considering he didn't even know what the word 'smut' meant at the time. Now that his eyes have, figuratively, been open to the world, he was more than curious about it's contents. He could have found this same book in any store instead of coming all the way to the Hokage's office to read it, saving time in the process, but not only could he never find them at libraries, they only other place they sell them at were corner stores and those stores seem to run out of them faster than he could say the title. _

_But now, he finally had his hands on one and it was time for him to enact his 'evil plan'. _

_You see, Naruto found out something very important about his somewhat symbiotic relationship with Sothis. Ever since he'd first learned that the Goddess could read anything that was on his mind through their shared minds and beings, a thought came to mind. Some time ago, he read that dreams were nothing more than images and desires/wishes that the human mind subconsciously creates as well as cognitive simulations of real-life situations that are fueled the more you want it. In rare cases, people have gained the ability to become lucid during the dreaming and enhance the experience tenfold by forcing the world around them to change to their image. It is the close thing humans have to being Gods and Naruto found the topic more intriguing the more he read into it that day. _

_Which bring him back to his 'plan'. If Sothis was able to consciously and unconsciously read his thoughts, then there should be no reason he shouldn't be able to influence what she dreams about. He didn't know exactly if their minds were one when she slept at first, but considering the only way she'd know if he was even alive while she slept is if their minds were connected, he was inclined to think otherwise. _

_It was very, _very_ petty what he was about to do and he wouldn't really be getting the full satisfaction from the injustice he'd been receiving for the past few weeks, but you have to get the best out of what you are given, right? It was that same thought process that had him sit down in Kage's chair and open the first page of the orange book. _

_An hour later, Naruto found that he couldn't put the book down. Despite the genre and how most people painted it, people really didn't highlight the genius behind the literature. Every scene written so far could be felt in the young shinobi's soul. The power and conviction behind the main character's motivations and love for Princess Kana could be felt in every dialogue and sentence. It was as if the author was telling the story through his real-life experience and the reader was taken on the ride voluntarily. Even the smut scenes were well written and the visuals that were assisted by the art given every other page made the experience that much more exhilarating. His favorite part so far was definitely the part where the main character and the princess were on the run from the debt collectors of Kaer Mohren. The surreal experience mixed with love and comedy left the blonde with visions of him in the main character's shoes. Running away from the world with the one he loved and exploring many other places and avenues along the way. Trying different foods from different villages while fighting side by side, trusty swords in their hands and nothing but their will to live peacefully without worrying about how the world viewed their relationship. Fighting any and everyone who stood in his way as he tried getting to the woman that meant everything to him. Smiling as their lips touched and they shared a night of passion that was far more memorable than the many they'd already shared. Walking into the sunset as a new journey peaked along the horizon. Smiling down at the blonde next to him as she gripped his hand tighter. Listen to the words he so adored hearing from her lips as their new journey was about to begin-_

…_Ah, he was at the end… how, disappointing…_

…

…

…_Wait, why was he here again? Something about…secrets? Punishment? Eh, whatever. He'd put that on the back-burner for now. In the meantime, this book had two sequels that _just so happen_ to also be in the Hokage's desk. He could get back to whatever he came here for after one chapter of the next book…or two…_

_Meanwhile, the once peaceful dreams of Sothis took an unexpected turn when the palace and servants that once surrounded her all were replaced with humans that weren't too different from the common folk she'd seen in Konoha. Even more confusing, she was forced to follow in 3__rd__ person view of a busty blonde woman and a white-haired male. Like a theater act, she watched as their lives advanced and was fascinated at how they chose to handle the obstacles thrown their way. _

_That fascination quickly turned to horror and disgust as they began partaking in various human mating rituals that she somehow couldn't escape from seeing. Whether it be in the bedroom or secretly in public places like restaurants and food restrooms, they went at it like…like _monkeys_! Why was she forced to watch this and why couldn't she look away! _

_Hours turned into weeks as she quickly learned that she couldn't wake up from the nightmare she was having. In that time, she learned everything about the couple she was an unwilling spectator to. Everything from their looks, to their hobbies, to their physical lives (especially their physical lives), to the woman they invited into their 'physical' lives, not a thing went unseen by the Goddess and she was confused on whether she was interested in what she was seeing or completely mortified. Their story truly was something you'd read in a fantasy and she couldn't help but to like the main character, but the mating parts she couldn't even choose to not be apart of completely ruined the experience for her. Like, why would anyone try these positions?! That is NOT supposed to go in a female's mouth! These places?! Why?! Just, WHY?! Have they NO decency?! No SHAME?! What in creators name is wrong with humans?!_

_Eventually, the Goddess was released from the prison the blonde unintentionally subjected her to, but whether he knew or not, the Goddess was unable to bring herself to fall asleep for a while._

* * *

_**~Omake~**_

_**Wrath of the Divine One**_

_**Rhea**_

_Imagine this. _

_You have a purpose in life. A purpose that you live for, breathe for, and would do everything in your power to make that purpose see fruit in the future. Imagine living all your life and donating all your resources to make sure this purpose is finally fulfilled. Imagine living years upon years to see this purpose through to the inevitable end where all your efforts would, hopefully, pay off in the end. That image you are seeing—it is the image of your reason for living. The reason you wake up every morning, the reason you go to work to provide for yourself or your family—it is the reason you continue pushing through the struggles of life despite everything it throws at you. Ultimately, it is what drives your happiness and ambition._

_Now, image someone, or something, violently ripping away that purpose and leaving you with zero chance of ever getting it back. No chance to restore it, no chance to start from scratch, it is just…gone. Gone like ashes to the wind. _

_If you can visualize that image in your head and are left with emotions of anger, despair, emptiness, then you can finally understand exactly how Rhea currently felt as she looks to the frightened eyes of the woman that once held the soul of her mother._

_As she'd feared, the first time she came within touching range of the woman three days ago there wasn't an ounce of her mother's energy in her. Instead of the holy light that she should have been able to feel with her mother's soul within her, there was only darkness and a feeling of terror that she dared not dwell too far into. All these years she has waited. Waited for her mother's perfect vessel to come back to her. Waited for her to grow in strength, beauty, and intelligence just so she could be the perfect host for her mother to once again walk this Earth in. _

_And what does she get for all her years of planning, faith, and hard work? She gets a failure that doesn't even realize that she has destroyed any chance of ever getting her mother back._

_It took absolutely everything in the Archbishop not to tear the, now tainted and useless, Crest Stone of her mother from the heart of the 'failure' that looked up to her with those…those _eyes _that were nothing like her mothers. It took everything in her to keep her regal appearance up in front of Seteth and her guards as she reassured this, this _thing_ and dropped the charges. The moment the words left her mouth, she quickly retreated from the cell before she lost the remainder of her composure. As she left, she gave a passing knight an order to have Jeralt meet her at her quarters and said nothing else to no one else. _

_30 minutes later, she looked out through her balcony to the many knights and students meddling about. Jeralt had entered her quarters a few minutes prior and had already announced his presence, but she had yet to acknowledge him. When she did, her voice lost her masked serenity and power leaked through every word. _

"_What happened to my mother's stone?" _

_She did not raise her voice for the knight at least 10 meters behind her, but she knew that he'd heard the question._

"…_What stone do you speak of?"_

_The Divine Child withheld her anger once more as the words left his lips. There was no chance she could believe Jeralt was oblivious to what she'd done to his spawn years ago considering he 'fled' with the child that would become her mother's body in the future. He knew. He KNEW… but she would entertain this just this once, and if he continued to lie to her—lie when he knew _damn_ well what she spoke of…_

"…_At your child's birth, in order to save its life, your wife asked me to remove the stone from her body and place it into her daughter's. It is the move that ultimately saved its life at the cost of your wife's. When the stone is nearby, my heart beats faster and I can feel my purpose in life as if it had physical form… I haven't felt that in a long time and wished to feel it again when next we met, but not only do I not feel it when I'm around your spawn, but I feel absolutely nothing when I'm around your child. So, I will ask one more time." At that moment, the child of Sothis turned to the blonde-haired man whose sweat could be seen at a molecular level through the now slit eyes of the woman before him. Waves of pressure had been pressing down on him since the words left her mouth and he felt as if his life was hanging on the question she was about to ask him once more. "_What** happened**_ to my Mother's __**Crest**__**Stone**__."_

"…_I do not know anything about a stone." His reply immediately garnered a reaction in the form of the pressure in the air increasing tenfold. So, he quickly added to his admission before his life was threatened any further, "however, I had a suspicion about something being wrong with Byleth 15 years ago." The unblinking stare she gave him told him that he needed to explain himself more or things were going to quickly spiral out of his control; not that he had any to begin with. "…15 years ago, something happened to Byleth back in a village in Hevring that cost the lives of over half the occupants including a good sum of my men." _

_Rhea listened to the story her 'former' head knight told to her. What she heard was everything she didn't want to hear because it told her very little of what had become of her mother's Crest Stone. The only thing she got out of the whole explanation was the fact that something had tainted that thing 15 years ago and, most likely, had tainted or destroyed her mother's Crest Stone in the process and made the thing uncontrollable and extremely powerful when severely injured or angered. _

_At the end of the story, Rhea gave no retort. Everything she'd learned did not point her in the right direction of what actually happened to her mother's perfect host and it made her blood boil. In fact, the more she sat there, the more the topic of that thing's demise tickled her interest. She should have choked that thing when she had the chance. Watched as the light faded from her eyes. Hear her draw her last breath as she wrung the remaining air from her lungs. _

_But then what? What exactly would that have accomplished besides destroying the image and work she'd done for all these centuries? The thing was a failure, definitely the biggest of them all, but killing her would not bring her mother back and she'd had lost the only clue to her mother in this world. First her mother's sword vanishes from the tomb she lay, and now the last remaining connection of her to this world was also nowhere to be found. _

_Just, what exactly had she done to deserve a fate such as this? Why are the Gods punishing her simply for seeking the comfort from the one who created her? Why did this world have to be so cruel?_

_When she finally turned from Jeralt, she looked out through her balcony and to the monastery once more. She had to calm down—no, she _needed_ to calm down. All hope was not yet lost. There was but one place in this world where her mother's stone would always resonate no matter what force tainted her energy. She would take her there and confirm her, hopefully, theory. If the worse just so happen to be confirmed… well…_

"_Jeralt, bring your child to the Tomb below the monastery at midnight tonight. We will see the root of this 'phenomenon' from there. Am I understood?" _

_Her voice held no opening for refusal. It was demand and Jeralt knew that, so he simply replied with an 'understood' before seeing himself out. _

_Meanwhile, Rhea joined her hands and began to pray. _

_Pray for her mother's safety. _

_Pray for fears to be alleviated. _

…_And Pray for the sins she would commit if this sick nightmare was indeed reality._

* * *

_**A/N: This chapter was basically done 4 weeks ago, but due to the 'epidemic' and other problems in my life, I didn't have the motivation to finish it. However, since I now got more time on my hands than I know what to do with, I was able to finish it. Wasn't really much in this. Just how their daily lives were like with their new sensei and the training they went through in the last 3 months. Next chapter will get into mission and will step into the first arc of the story that will be a whopping 8 chapters! (Note: this could change any time in the future depend on chapter lengths.) **_

_**On other news, I want to thank every one of you who has followed this story and A Shinobi's Awakening. Both has become the first and second Naruto x Fire Emblem fanfic on the web and I couldn't be more proud to have written it! It is all thanks to you guys and I couldn't have gotten this far without the support and critiques you all have sent me! As a reward, I am doing something for both stories. **_

_**For both stories, I will write an Omake and give credit to who ever I find to be more interesting or entertaining! Please, don't limit yourselves on this one. It could be anything from Naruto and Lucina getting drunk at a bar, to Naruto having tea with Walhart. It all depends on YOUR imagination (and my decision lol)**_

_**Don't have much else to say on this aside from hoping you all are OK during these hard times and I hope you are staying safe and social isolated. This is far from a joke now and I wish everyone has now seen that they will take this virus seriously. **_

_**One last thing I want to say is that if you have noticed some changes in the history of Fodlan, then know that it is NOT an error and will be explained in either later chapters or the next!**_

_**Anyways, stay safe and hope to see you next chapter!**_


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